/5eg/ D&D Fifth Edition General

bear is probably the way to go for this but i'm also strongly considering the totem of the wolf for my barbarian. party consists of artificer, wizard, and forge cleric

what do you think, /5eg/?

>>51555338
Bear will serve you better, wolf really shines if you have another frontliner (fighter/ranger/paladin etc), but without those heavy hitters it falls behind.

>>51555274
>have natrual affinity for necromancy magic
>as a child not even notice as you constantly have a really weak version of soul drain active
>people just get tired with you around, without even noticing.
>people start subconsciously associating you with the tiredness
>people being to natrually dislike you

how is that?

>>51555492
I've never seen a wolf barbarian in actual play. Does it have to be a tough frontliner, or could a melee rogue work? Those guys always seem to need a melee partner.

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>>51555555
>5E
>All these 5's
It's a sign!

>>51555564
Rogue will do, monk is another good one given how many attacks they can put out. Generally characters who can make multiple attacks per round, especially early on (two weapon fighting or PAM, action surge etc) get the most of Wolf totem.

I'm quite new to 5e, but I have chance to get a game soon. I need to know though - is there any equivalent of 3.5 favored soul class? IE spontaneous casting, charisma based cleric variant?

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>>51555555

>>51555626
Lore Bard is a spontaneous charisma caster that can pick spells from ANY class and gives no fucks. About as good as it'll get.

>>51555638
Yes, but I'm mostly for the "divine" flavour. And standard wisdom based cleric not really fits my concept either.

>>51555555
...Nice.

Also, your concept is okay, too. Could veer on the edgy side, but that's not inherently bad, and it's a good start thus far

>>51555646
Alternatively, is there any "divine" (allowing CG alignment) power source for sorcerer or warlock? Both would fit as well.

>>51555626
Spontaneous and preparation-based casting have been merged into a single casting method for 5e. Everyone prepares their spells, everyone can cast any spell they have prepared in any slot that's big enough.

The charisma based casters are the Paladin, Bard and Sorcerer. One sorcerer option is the Favoured Soul, but it's not the same as the 3e version, it's still an arcane caster, and it's currently in playtesting/Unearthed Arcana.

https://5egmegaanon.github.io/5etools/classes.html#Sorcerer,Favored%20Soul%20(UA)

>>51555776
...but apparently you don't mind too much about that, so go for it.

>>51555776
Warlock has Undying Light. Seeker might allow it. Undying (not light, just stupidly similar names) might too.

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>>51555555
I like it.

>>51555805
Oh, thanks. This UA favored soul is just perfect for what I seek. I just hope my DM will allow it.

I miss primal spellcasting as a separate thing from divine spellcasting

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as a DM, should I actually "tell" or show players where the enemy's aoe is on a spell that doesn't seem obvious (like Slow), and instead just tell them "he casts a spell, you feel slower until you walked over there, now you feel fine."

>>51556582
I'd forgotten that the Druid wasn't in the first 4e PHB.

>>51555555
continueing this
>as you grow older this is becoming stronger nad more prelevant
>reaches a point if you maintain skin to skin contact with someone for more 20 minutes you risk killing them
>eventually you premanently cover your entire in bandages to make sure you absolutely won't touch anyone
>reason for going on a journey is to find a way to counter it and actually let you touch others


DM says it's OP, but I can't think of a way to nerf it without making it obsolete, he suggested something like "you cast a spell on your bandages to prevent it", but than what's the point of going on a journey if you can solve your problem by doing the equivalent of swallowing a pill 3 times a day.

>>51555865
I really like the quirks they added int he UA stuff.

do you guys know what a thrallherd is?

You know what, I'm all about science fantasy and what not so I want space magic.

I think a cool idea would be a sorcerer who gains cosmic magic because they were born when a new star came into being or died.

>>51557009
Yes, a Thrallherd is a psychic based class from previous editions who could get a Thrall that was basically a slave.
But they loved it because you're a psychic mind rape machine.

Just use a GooLock

so is each feature for the totem barbarian locked into that specific animal totem

ie if i am bear totem, can i use the eagle aspect of the beast?

>>51557073
No, the barbarian class never allows any significant choice to be made post level 3 outside of multiclassing

found this on RPG Stack Exchange. is this correct?

"Here are the legal permutations of cantrips and lvl1+ spells used as actions and bonus actions:
•Cantrip(action) + Cantrip(bonus)
•Cantrip(action) + Spell(bonus)
•Spell(bonus) + Cantrip(action)

Here are the illegal permutations:
•Spell(action) + Cantrip(bonus)
•Cantrip(bonus) + Spell(action)
•Spell(bonus) + Spell(action)

>>51557178
Yes. If you cast a soell as a bonus action, the only other spell you may cast that turn is a cantrip. It doesn't matter if the spell you cast as a bonus action was a cantrip or not.

>>51557300

but you can NOT cast a Spell as a Regular Action + Bonus Action Cantrip, correct?

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This thing is about done, just needs some wording fixes, and I'd like some suggestions to work with for Frost's Fortitude so it doesn't feel so... Weird.
Like, Wisdom doesn't make sense, and my only other option is Constitution, which feels too strong, but I wanna make it come across as these assholes being hardy and tough to get through.

>>51556825
In the particular example of a spell such as slow you can get away with not doing so. When it comes to something like flaming sphere on the other hand it's readily apparent which areas around it are or are not on fire, so you can communicate this to them. If a spell's area is not readily apparent you should not tell them unless they make some extra effort and have some ability to analyze the spell itself.

>>51556930
Just make it so that touching is actually you using your action to cast a necrotic cantrip or something. Against a commoner that would probably kill them, against most monsters you fight it's just a normal attack.

>>51557009
a dude who controls a herd of npcs
as we can see from necromancer's experience, it doesn't end well

>>51556930
This desu:>>51557387
You have Chill Touch as an actual Touch thing.

I'll make Dex a little more balanced, improve Int, and have it make sense with a single rule change.

>Initiative is now determined by INT modifier, because quick thinking in dangerous situations and not freezing up is more important than how quickly you can move.

Thoughts?

>>51557882
Wisdom sound more appropriate

>>51557316
Did I stutter? If you cast a spell as a bonus action, the only other spell you can cast that turn is a cantrip. Why is that so hard for you to understand?

What's a good way to run a riverside ambush by a rival group of warriors? I want more dynamic fights. The party will be coming from the land to the river to catch a ride on a ship, and the ambush crew will hit them at the dock

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>>51555274
>What are you expecting from UA Sorcerer?
>hopes
Alchemical Sorcerer that gained magical powers not because of his lineage, but after preparing and drinking a special elixir.
Make it an alternative option to moon druids with their DPR/tanking oriented forms (while still retaining full casting while not transformed) with something like a chemical rage mode/transmutating yourself into a chimera. Maybe make your raging chimera ability LEGO-based: you expend sorcery points on adding different body parts: tentacles, horns, heads, acid breath etc., in the same thematic vain as 3,5 binders/totemists.
Side abilities could involve effects boosting the effectiveness of your acid/poison spells (like acid/poison version of elemental adept, maybe?) as well as some ribbons like free alchemy/herbalism kit proficiencies.
>expectations
Fiendblood sorc.
Mechanicus-based sorc or a nature sorc.
An underpowered gish.

>>51557934
Wisdom is the single most powerful saving throw around, with Constitution in the second place.

Wis saves are often just "make this or you can't do shit the whole fight" or alternately "make this or you spend the fight killing your friends."

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im dming for my family for the first time and im running LMoP. they were just flushed out of the cragmaw hideout twice and dont seem inclined to go back in. any ways to pique their interest to explore the rest of the cave? and does anybody have any modifications to the module that they recommend?

So I assume there is no way to do a Far Realm/aberrationy char beyond a GOOlock, right?

Doesn't seem to have much actually thematic about them, though the level 14 prize of getting a permanent flunky (which could be an Archmage or Warord) is sweet.

>>51555274
So, if a character falls into water and gets dropped to 0 because of the damage they take from the fall, they start making Death saving throws.

Does being unconscious underwater effect that, or is it just straight 3 death or 3 saves? If they stabilize do they destabilize immediately until they're saved? What exactly is the appropriate series of rulings / actions.

>>51557882
IIRC the Mistborn RPG includes intelligence, just in a weird way.
I think it was something like: players first announce what they're planning to do in a round by order of dumbest to smartest, meaning higher-intelligence characters can take into account what the rest of the party is likely to do before making their own plan.

>>51556825
This answer is right>>51557367, I just want to make sure you know you can't just walk away from slow. It effects creatures, not an area, normally.

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>>51558247
Yeah, I feel like there definitely should be more Far Realm options. I kinda miss stuff like aberrant wildshape and such.
I guess you could kinda go Shadow Sorc with a "dunwich child" flavour and claim that your hound of ill omen is actually a doggo of tindalos.

>>51557037
I agree, the Sorcerer had a lot of good paths in 4E.

>>51557073
The totem barbarian has you pick which feature you get at each level you get a subpath feature with choices. You can flavor this as a multi-animal totem (like a totem pole) or as a creature that encompasses all the selections, like a griffon for pack leader and angry flight.

So why is it exactly a druid cannot wildshape into an owlbear or a hippogryph?

What exactly makes it so a giant spider is okay, but a phase spider is not?

Or why the dire wolf is viable, but the winter wolf is not?

>>51558385
Magimachines, son!

>>51558385
Because 5e is babby's first RPG and magical beasts scare the developers after 3.5's horrible CoDzilla builds.

>>51558385
Well one thing I found interesting in 3e was that Animate Dead, Magic Jar and Polymorph yield very similar results: the idea that magic can appropriate or duplicate a body's physical parameters pretty well, but magic can't commandeer/duplicate magic quite as well.

Or to put it another way, you could use magic to project a blast of fire or cold, but turning into a dragon or a winter wolf's shape has nothing to do with it.

In the case of the druid I think its probably NATURAL WORLD MUMBO JUMBO.

>>51558385
This >>51558411 pretty much. They just decided to make beasts shit (compared to REEL monsters), and it's pretty safe to say we will never see anything like MoMF or Warshaper or Aberrant Wildshape Feat.

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>>51558411
well I know that.

I was looking for an in universe explanation.

Owlbears are not really much different from any other wild preditor, yet they are monstrosities.

On the other hand this abomination is considered a normal beast

>>51558452
Not being able to turn into owlbears is harder to explain than not being able to turn into critters with innate supernatural powers, yeah.

>>51558477
>>51558452
The Owlbear is an abominable creature metaphysically stitched together with powerful magic

>>51555274

I'm expecting UA Mystic.

>>51555338
>>51555492

You can pick multiple animals too at each interval.

Bear is probably the best 3rd level though.

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>>51555555
HEX GET

>>51555274
is it viable to have a high INT character for checks and RP situations, even when their primarily a DEX/STR class? like a high ranger who uses his INT checks to solve problems where his strength would fail him/ pass other INT checks outside of combat?

>>51558516
Yet now they seem to be the same as any other forest creature, they reproduce and bear cubs the same as any beast.

Then theres the claims by fae that they have always existed in the feywild as a natural creature.

What are your favorite aspects of UA? I personally really dig the Storm Barbarian.

>>51558539
depends on DM.

Im playing a warlock and I really wish my Int was higher now because I have to make an insight or arcana check for basically everything.

>>51558547
1) Magic

2) Fey fucking shits lie

>>51558570
ah, so a more lenient campaign would be a yes, but in one where we're facing incredibly difficult encounters it may be better to have an optimized character.

Alright I've got a Halfling Ranger in the party and he has a Giant Badger for his companion.

Now it's medium and he's small so obviously he rides it around but what should I do about its burrow speed? RAW there's nothing stopping him from riding it while it digs right?

Also after digging can medium and small creatures go through the hole? It seems like it would make sense but I'm kinda worried about them using it like a siege engine.

I'm homebrewing some stuff, and wanted an opinion on how useful or not useful constant resistance to fire and cold damage would be. Too situational? Too broad?

>>51556894
Good. I honestly hate wildshape, and I think it should be replaced.

So, if a character falls into water and gets dropped to 0 because of the damage they take from the fall, they start making Death saving throws.

Does being unconscious underwater effect that, or is it just straight 3 death or 3 saves? If they stabilize do they destabilize immediately until they're saved? What exactly is the appropriate series of rulings / actions.

>>51558705
every round they will take one automatic death failure because they are drowning

I wanna throw two ogres at a party of 6 level 1s. Would this kill them or would action economy win out?

>>51558699
>only unique feature of the class aside from hippie flavour
>replaced

>>51558752
did one of them cast mordenkainen's faithful watchdog?

>>51558752
You do understand that they can oneshot any player on a somewhat lucky roll?

>>51558777
No
Its a party of 1 primarily ranged fighter, 1 bard, 1 warlock, and 3 barbarians.

>>51558745
So they take an automatic fail, AND roll for a chance at a success or fail? Or it's just a fail?

If they stabilize, does anything happen?
CAN they stabilize?

>>51558784
Well I feel stupid now. I'm running http://theangrygm.com/fighting-spirit/ to change the feel of the game. I've completely forgotten to take it into account for CR calculations. I should probably just assume they're one level higher than they are for the most part.

>>51558815
I mean as a player I honestly think that throwing deadly/high danger encounters at such low levels is fun. Players don't have much options at such levels, and if your character gets one-shot and dies, it's like, whatever. You did not manage to get attached to them yet.
At least wait for level 3, when most players get their class features.

>>51558792
does one of them have a +9 orge slaying knife?

>>51558807
You're choice, depends on how lethal you want it to be.

If they do stabilize though I would have them remain unconscious until someone dragons them out of the water and resuscitates them, otherwise they will die in 20 minutes or so from braindeath due to lack of oxygen

>Trying to align a large map to a Roll20 grid
Suffering.

You can only have one bonus action per round correct?

>>51558921
how do you mean?

If someone wants to spend their action on it, I would say they would be able to make 3 bonus actions

>>51558851
>At least wait for level 3, when most players get their class features
For what? Throwing deadly encounters at them or changing the way I do CR calculations?

>>51558522
Mystic was a mistake. A poor class that should be scrapped and instead use the concept to make archetypes for the Monk, Barbarian and Sorcerer.

>>51558921
RaW, unless you have a special ability saying other wise, you get movement up to your highest speed, 1 action, 1 bonus action, and 1 reaction per turn you take.

>>51558936
I thought the way it worked was you could have one action, say attack, and then you could cast a spell as a bonus action.

>>51558957
That's what I thought, thanks.

>>51555805
>Single casting method for 5e
>What are spells know vs spells prepared...
Anon, you don't have to lie to kick it.
Just admit you haven't actually read the PH, or refrain from posting about things you are ignorant of.

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>>51552045
"The Great Day of His Wrath" by John Martin. He has a lot of pretty neat Armageddon type paintings.

>>51558975
you can only cast a spell as a bonus action if the casting time is 1 bonus action

>>51558975
You cast a spell as a bonus action only if it the time it takes to cast is a bonus action. And if you want to cast two spells the full action has to be a cantrip.

>4d6 drop the lowest
>14, 11, 7, 15, 13, 9
What should I do with these stats?

>>51558209
The one major change I made was to move the sidequest concerning the dragon to after they finish Wave Echo Cave and hit level 5.

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>>51559170
kys

Is it in order? I hope not because that's a seriously shit con stat right there. If it isn't then you can pretty much do whatever, it's about the same as the standard array.

>>51558275
Running out of breath and suffocating knocks you to 0 and starts death saves, so if you're already there there's no extra effect

>>51558705
>When a creature runs out of breath, it can survive for a number of rounds equal to its Constitution modifier (minimum 1 round). At the start of its next turn, it drops to 0 hit points and is dying.

If a character falls in water while at 0 HP, they are dying and start making death saving throws. I would say no automatic failures unless they take actual damage, but until they are taken out of the water they can't stabilize. So they just keep rolling death saves until 3 failures or until someone gets them out of there.

Which is the best Fighter Archetype? I've been looking at Battlemaster, but how useful are the combat maneuvers?

>>51559214
>If it isn't then you can pretty much do whatever, it's about the same as the standard array.
Standard array with -1 to each dump stat. It's a really sorry roll.

>>51559393
BM is the one I see recommended here the most

>>51559393
Very useful, and for all kinds of play styles. If you're working only off the PHB, it is probably the best. Champion is alright, while I feel Eldritch Knight falls a bit flat to what you would expect.

So Fighter vs Barbarian, which is the best damage dealer? Bringing in UA options as well.

>>51559542
fighter in terms of single round if going full nova

barb for sustained damage each round

>>51559542
What level? Fighters get a massive boost at level 11 and have more room to up strength and get GWM+PAM by that point.
Barbarians before then have rage damage boosts. Before level 11, I'd probably say the barbarian can deal more damage, not to mention they also can self-grant advantage.

There are also fighters with a single level dip of barbarian.

>>51559170
Make a heavy armor cleric or a moon druid

>>51559393
BM is the only Fighter archetype.

>>51557882
What about the average of your Dex+Wis+Int?

So someone with Dex 16 Wis 14 Int 12 would have an initiative of +3

>>51559776
>level 11
hhhhhhhh

Fluffwise, what familiar would you choose for a GOO chain warlock, /5eg/? None jump out as immediately for GOO as for archfey or fiend.

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>>51560058
You think an unspeakable eldritch horror from beyond the veil of reality is gonna give away the goose by plopping some writhing pseudopod on your shoulder? They're in it for the long game. They know how to be subtle. Anything works.

Besides, the Warlock picks the familiar. Go with the character's personality, not what their hideously distant star-god from outside time desires.

Question kinda related to D&D.

IS there a copy of Adventures of Middle-Earth available anywhere online?

Thanks

>>51560058
A sentient tumor. Not very useful but whatever.

>>51560123
True enough. Pseudodragon would definitely be the personality-based choice. Though to be fair, archfey are tricksters and fiends, well, the devil isn't exactly known for his bluntness.

>>51556582
Because of the Weight of History, most DnD settings had Gods of Nature, because Druids are traditionally considered to be using divine magic. If you remove Druids as Divine Casters, gods of Nature feel weird and out-of-place. Since 4E generally ignored established settings, it didn't matter as much. But then we went back to using Forgotten Realms as our baseline, and oddly enough, even with all the bizarre changes in 4E, nobody thought to kill off the nature gods. So, back to the old way of doing things.
Thankfully, it is ridiculously easy to handwave and houserule this.

so I just checked the 5e mega trove and where the fuck is Volo's

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>>51560378
In the Supplements folder.

Because it's a supplement.

Anyone got a PDF for tiefling cosmetic traits? My totally normal human artificer died recently, the druid reincarnated him into a tiefling and I have no idea how these things can look barring "a satan"

>>51560419
Yeah I found it, I saw a bunch of maps and shit in the supplements folder and spun 360 and moonwalked away

>>51560455
they've got a funny skin color, stupid looking horns, and sometimes a tail
describe them all the way you want

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What's the highest level you've got to?

What was the game like at that level?

I haven't played a Level 20 but I feel like it should be different somehow.

>>51560455
I don't have the PDF but here's the small list from SCAG:
small horns; fangs or sharp teeth; a forked tongue; catlike eyes; six fingers on each hand; goatlike legs ; cloven hoofs; a forked tail; leathery or scaly skin; red or dark blue skin; cast no shadow or reflection; exude a smell of brimstone.

>>51557877
that

>>51559005
Not him, but the fact that spells are no longer prepared in a specific slot in 5e does mean that essentially all casting is spontaneous in 5e.
And that's fine. The post you replied to was not criticising 5e and neither am I. I don't know why you took it that way.

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>>51560455
I found this one, if it helps.

Does anyone know of some high CR incorporeal undead? I'm making a necromantic city ruled by an aristocracy of high CR undead and already have vampire lord, demilich, illithilich, and regular lich but I wan t a couple more to fill it out. I don't want another lich so dracolich is off the table and i'm considering mummy lord but its in the frozen north so it'd have to be mummified by cold rather than wrappings.

>>51561202
If you can't find one, make one.

>>51560036
Too complicated

Actually bought DM/PHB/MM, 1st time DMing. So far I'm pretty decent at ad libing and improv when the players want to go off the rails.

Pretty cool so far, I've actually started reading the MM, specifically green dragons. In Lost mines, my group is most likely going to confront this dragon. Out of all the dragons I read, this dragon likes manipulating, making innocents evil, and "living treasure", not killing all of his enemies at once, but gaining control of them through some means. So I'm going to have him be aristocratic.

I think this presents me with a fantastic opportunity to one: illustrate how they will get their asses kicked when they confront strong things and disillusion this RPG game win any fight, two: to really be cowed into a position that is disadvantageous to them, because they have no choice but to try and outwit and escape the dragon's will if they allow themselves to be beaten or taken advantage of. I'm not going to force them to lose, but if they clump up mid conversation or they take the offer:

1. Venomfang is going to give +1 weapons and armor to the party(a +1 maul, a +1 flail, a +1 plate, a +1 studded leather, medallion of thoughts (venomfang monitors them through this medallion) all of them are from different cultures and places, an assortment of weaponry and items from his hoard. But they are cursed. As long as you do as Venomfang commands, the magic persists. If you choose to disobey venomfang, or do something that would be against his wishes while wearing them, they deal acid damage (1d6) and cannot be wielded or worn. Venomfang would order things such as... conquer cragmaw castle for me so I can make it my new lair, otherwise he does not act as a constant guiding NPC, but will once in awhile order the party to do something, or retrieve treasure for his hoard.

Player also stole a blatantly cursed (was warned)necklace to sell it. need a curse.

>>51558477
Owlbears were created by unnatural means, so I'd wager that's why

>>51558539
Min-max wise, no. INT is by far the weakest stat in 5e, so much so that even arcane tricksters and eldritch knights are advised not to go high INT.

>>51561333
Adding three number and dividing by 3 is too complicated

I know 5e uses simple formulas but come one, that's 5th grade shit

>>51561202
Mummy Lords are pretty cool, then there's also Death Knights and Death Tyrants. For a high CR incorporeal undead, I suggest taking a Wraith as basis and buff him up a bunch. Not just damage and HP, you know, Auras, fear, Magic Resistance, that kind of stuff.

>>51558759
It's not fucking interesting at all. I wouldn't mind a druid subclass specializing in wildshape, but the fact that ALL druids turn into animals doesn't make very much sense to me. I think the druid should be focused more around druid-appropriate spellcasting (which, of course, would require adding more spells to the game) or features, as opposed to "you're uh, a wolf now. go bite them dude"

>>51561400
I mean, seeing as the average is +2 and not +3, I'd say "too complicated" is pretty accurate.

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>>51561553
That's what I get for trying to do three things at once

You win this round anon

>>51560941
>small horns
>always fuck huge in art
I wish they actually represented these variations better. Why no art of blue tieflings or ones with hooves? They're all the same red people.

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I'm running Princes of the Apocalypse, and my group has purposefully gathered everybody camped outside Scarlet Moon Hall for the purpose of figuring out who's a cultist and who's not.

How should I handle combat with such a big group of different creatures with different motivations? I'm feeling a little overwhelmed and I'm a bit worried that the combat will drag on. I've read in this thread before about how people have handled this comat, but I can't remember the details. If anybody has any suggestions, I'd appreciate the advice. Thanks.

>>51561715
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention: just to clarify, we ended the last session with the player's intent to attack one NPC they are convinced is a cultist, so it's definitely gonna get violent.

>>51560664
I got to level 12 in a Planescape game. Planescape is already built around being a bit blasse with supernatural creatures, and the structure of the game was very much based on the GM setting up an adventure on a different plane for every level, so don't think our campaign was very typical.

>>51561602
The images depict 4e Points of Light-type Tieflings. That's why they look fairly uniform. The Variant appearances listed are for settings where Tieflings are the X-Men, not a distinct group of ancient Gypsy-Jews.

>>51558947
>sorcerer
haha no thanks, I'll take the full class

>>51559393
Very useful at low level where getting an ally to move 5ft out of turn is actually a big deal. They drop off pretty hard by high level where combat just becomes both sides flinging an enormous damage dick stick and big AoE spell effects and praying that the beholder doesn't roll disintegration ray. I pretty much just use them to get a little more damage when I crit either way, since you can wait until you've seen your attack roll on some of them.

All in all if being the No Magic Guy is not essential to your character concept you should pick some other class. Fighters are kinda shit.

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>>51561864
>Fighters are kinda shit.

>>51561864
>Fighters are kinda shit.
u wot m8?

Me
>First time DMing
Players
>Friend
>Friend's girlfriend
>Friend's younger brother

>make characters
>get to Younger Brother, ~24 years old.
>He wants to make a bard
>Picks entertainer background
>comments on how many instruments he has and how many he knows how to play
>says he's a one man band
>Entertainer says you start with a costume
>He says he wants a costume that is a dragon on one side and a heroic character on the other
>Says his character wrote a Play where a hero fights a dragon, but he plays both parts and just spins around to change roles

This is his first time playing D&D and i think he fucking hit it out of the park.

His older brother, who is 26 made a Wood Elf Ranger who hates people and is adventuring because he wanted to leave the bullshit of society behind him. Basically a loner who has no place being in an adventuring party.
The girlfriend is playing a Dragonborn Rogue named : A girl has no name.
She didn't realize Dragonborn were literal Dragon-people. She originally thought they were like Targaryens from Game of Thrones.
I think she essentially wanted to combine Daenerys Targaryen and Arya Stark from game of thrones.
She said she was fine with looking like a dragon.

The hilarious thing was that both my friend and his girlfriend said "I'll be sad if my character dies, i put alot of work into this"

Not sure what kind of players they will be, we only did a character building session. They are all new players.

Admittedly I am excited for the Bard player. He say the Cantrip Vicious Mockery and said
>So i can damage people by insulting them?
>I'm gonna be the biggest shitlord bard ever!

I want to give him special rewards for being awesome.

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>>51561864
>getting an ally to move 5ft out of turn is actually a big deal.

>>51561730
>>51561715
You could always establish large enough groups as "swarms". Give them the stats of, like, giants with some swarm properties.

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>>51561602
I got you senpai

>Tfw can't decide what Barbarian archetype to pick for a character concept

Any advice or reccomendations? Berserker seems the "Safest" or most straightforward/logical.

>>51562042
Totem, the others just don't match up to it (unless UA is allowed)

Hey 5e, how can you determine the possible wealth you'd receive from an iron and coal mine?

>>51562086
by asking your DM.

>>51561602
The red ones are the Eberron tieflings that became standard in 4e.

My party is facing some were creatures today, mostly werewolves. But because people know werewolves so well and they'll automatically go to their weaknesses, I'm trying to keep the mystery up by having them in their animal forms (until they figure it out).

In case combat happens before they figure things out, would it be unfair to make their Con saves for resisting the curse behind the screen? Making a con save on every hit from a wolf will probably make them hyper suspicious.

>>51562086
I'm pretty sure that any lord worth anything would send an army to secure shit going down in a money factory.

>>51561353

>RPG game win any fight
Though you do say 'I'm not going to force them to lose', I'd like to take the time to remind that winning through combat should always be on the table, even if it's ridiculously hard or requires preparation and careful working
.
>Look at all these +1 items
Gee, you couldn't make magic items any more boring, could you? 'Look, I just so happen to have all the +1 items tailored to you that you need. Sure, they don't do anything but directly improve your stats, but hey, it's MAGIC!'
I'm angry. Angry about magic items.
At least it's cursed and indefinite... But still.

>smart dragons
A smart yet honourless dragon would also be wise to try to convince players to not attack because 'actually, I'm the one in the right here!' because a lot of adventurers seem to have a soft spot, even if it's monsters. Which is a great opportunity to send them into a deathtrap and drag them back out after, or try to fake 'saving' the players.
But I guess that's a bit much. Simply beating the players up and then offering them loot in exchange for servitude should addle their brains less.


Also
>Curse: This medallion is obviously fucking cursed, so nobody's going to buy it, idiot.

But it's good to let people stray from the path a bit.

>>51562175
>Making a con save on every hit from a wolf will probably make them hyper suspicious.
If the goal is to make them not know they're were-beings then why are you not rolling their saves for them

>>51562079
Let's assume everything's allowed.

What's the particular appeal to the Totem?

>>51562239
>would it be unfair to make their Con saves for resisting the curse behind the screen?

I guess you technically still answered the question, though.

>>51562251
People love Bear totem of the spirit because it's resistance to everything but psychic, making you super tanky

Also, people are terrified of exhaustion for some reason. idk y

>>51562042
I think the Storm Barbarian is pretty cool. Do you have a particular concept in mind?

>>51562304
>Disadvantage on ability checks
That's why.

>>51562175
It's especially unfair if they have abilities that affect such saves.

Instead, make the players make the saves a while after the encounter, and only players that were wounded to some extent.

SOHEI

WHEN?

>>51562251
it's not so much the appeal of the totem as it is the repulsion of the berserker, the berserker gets a bonus action attack every round but gain exhaustion from it.

The totem barbarian can get a bonus action attack every round by taking a feat. No exhaustion. Plus they get their totem abilities.

The UA barb stuff isn't particularly strong, but do open up some possibilities that the barbarian otherwise has no access to.

>>51562251
Resistance against every damage type, or if your party is mostly melee martials, giving everyone advantage on all attacks just because.

>>51562344
Which feat is that?

>>51562329
>>51562175
Oh, and, you don't necessarily have to follow every trope about werewolves.
It's always fine to make minor, sensible alterations to existing beings. If players want to know the exact nature, they're better start rolling those int checks.

>>51562304
>>51562251
Berzerker takes a bonus action to make attacks. Raging in the first place takes a bonus action.
Exhaustion can be pretty severe if you let if stack up, and IIRC you don't lsoe more than 1 stack of exhaustion per long rest.

Sure, bonus action attacks can be strong, but you might as well just take PAM.

>>51562367
Great Weapon Master for a bonus action attack whenever you crit or kill
Polearm Master for bonus action attack whenever you wield a glaive, halberd, or quarterstaff (sure it's a d4, but you still had strength and rage to the roll)

>>51562329
>>51562377
That's a fair point. I do want to stick to the 'each time hit by a bite' they gotta make a save, but I can just keep count.

Having a bunch of throws once they take a rest makes a bit of sense, have it take time to set in. If they're all camped together they can still potentially help each other if they got bit a lot.

Why does a Pike weigh 18 lb and not benefit from Polearm Master?

>>51561504
>>51561289
Any other suggestions. I like the idea of scaling up a wraith because I want to make a "wraithgate" which the city was built around. I'm going to include some werepeoples as one of the 'houses' because stereotypes in case that gives any suggestions.
Would a banshee that screeches power word kills be too damn strong? Fingers of death? Any more undead of any variety would be super useful, especially for fleshing out heh, geddit, what kind of servants they use. Like the illithilich will use zombie aberrations, since most don't have skeletons, and a death tyrant second in command. Regular lich will use singular powerful skeletons left over from previous wars with some massive undead skeleton, possibly a tarrasque, as its main dealio.

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>have many great ideas for DMing campaigns
>barely know 5e

>>51562410
d4 as compared to d12 or 2d6. If it were the difference between d4 and d6 or something I'd agree with you, but that's an effective bonus of +4/+4.5 damage (not to mention critical hits). It's the difference between 11.5 damage per hit and 7.5 damage per hit (at 3rd level).

Typically you're gonna take a long rest after the toughest fight of the day anyway, which is when Frenzy makes the most sense.

Like, a level of exhaustion is still too big a drawback (I might have said "you can use this feature once. Each additional time you use this feature before you complete a long rest, you gain one level of exhaustion." instead), but I do think /5eg/ tends to exaggerate its awfulness.

>>51562445
I'd honestly just bundle it into one save that starts easy and gets harder and harder but caps out at a certain number, rather than a lot of saves.

>>51562484
Beats me.
Not every weapon has to be entirely viable in its base form, but monsters might still use them. After all, the DM might decide some drafted villagers are better with a pike than halberd.

>>51562514
It's not the hardest system in the world to learn. I still think 4e is the most DM-friendly edition, but 5e tends to keep its rules simple. At least simple enough that when in doubt you can guess how to proceed (protip: it's usually advantage/disadvantage).

What are some of your "great ideas"?

>>51562555
I'd argue that 5e is somewhat more streamlined that 4e, myself.

>>51562304
>>51562347
Christ. That does sound silly.
>>51562344
Well, not everyone can easily use the feat, right? Plus, a D4 is...eh?
>>51562377
And the Berserker doesn't have much else going for it other than fighting, does it? Shit.
>>51562319
A straightforward, brutally-honest being raised by stereotypical oni, who actively hates lying and gossipping. Wields a tetsubo or whatever it's called that uses maul stats. Kinda stock, but I haven't played much anyhow.

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>>51562514
Just read the books, senpai.

>>51562522
true but think of it this way, yes you will have reduced damage compared to the berserker, BUT:
>you can do it for all encounters,
>you still get the totem abilities.
>you still benefit from the other ability of polearm master

>>51562577
>Well, not everyone can easily use the feat, right? Plus, a D4 is...eh?
if you are a barbarian, you can easily use the feat, you will almost always be wielding a two handed weapon. The only reason to not take it (from a mechanics point of view) is that your DM won't let you.

>>51562584
So Frenzy should just be a 3rd attack instead of a bonus action attack
?

>>51562569
From the player's side, yes, definitely. But the 4e DMG is way more helpful for creating interesting scenarios both in and out of combat.

>>51562584
They're not actually mutually exclusive. Take PAM, but Frenzy through the final fight of the day.

Just to reiterate, I'm not arguing Frenzy isn't bad, I'm arguing it's not that bad.

>>51562577
>A straightforward, brutally-honest being raised by stereotypical oni
Then the Spirits one from the UA could work.

>>51562577
>Well, not everyone can easily use the feat, right? Plus, a D4 is...eh?
Anyone that can wield a polearm and has decent strength damage.

It's a d4 plus modifier. So it's automatically better than TWF unless you've got the TWF fighting style which only a few classes get.
You also have reach.

tl;dr, PAM is mechanically the strongest feat for martials, bar none.

>>51562719
Alright, I can't argue with your first point.

>>51562100
They've no idea themselves

>>51562730
I was talking more about being able to afford the feat, and half the feat is useless if you don't want to use polearms.
>>51562719
Would someone raised by a group that isn't even the same species even have 'ancestral spirits'?

Any good place to find dungeons? looking to see if there are any cool ones.

>>51562513
>Would a banshee that screeches power word kills be too damn strong?
YES, though it does sound awesome. To be fair, a regular Banshee wail is already some crazy shit, especially if you up the DC a bunch since this one would obviously have higher CR and more Charisma. You could be a 200 HP high level barbarian, but if you fail that you go straight to 0 HP.

I think those high level spells (Power Word Kill, Finger of Death) are more a lich's thing, and you already have a bunch of those. Powerful Wraiths or Banshees should have their own thing. For a Wraith, I can only think of those Ring Wraiths from LoTR. Probably an Aura of Annihilation that deals some necrotic damage (10? 15?) to anything that ends its turn within 30ft of the Wraith, and requires a Wisdom save vs fear (like the Fear Aura from a Pit Fiend).

For a Banshee, it could have an aura similar to an NPC that I saw in one of the adventures:
>Deathly Choir. Any creature within 10 feet of the Banshee that isn't protected by a mind blank spell hears in its mind the screams of the thousands of people she has killed. As a bonus action, she can force all creatures that can hear the screams to make a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw. Each creature takes 16 (3d10) psychic damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
Could have a stun effect instead of damage, up to you.

>>51563088
http://donjon.bin.sh/
there's a dungeon generator for 5e on this site.

Lately I've been having a problem of trying to make "unique" character concepts and they all end up being non-optimal crap. Trying to make a character with a race/class combo without a matching ABI is rough.

>>51563125
yeah, that's really awesome, I was checking it out.

I guess I should've been more specific, I'm looking for battlemaps for dungeons, or ways to piece them together.

>>51563136
non optimal doesn't mean non fun

>>51563178
Make your players map out the dungeons you don't have to give it to them or keep track of shit for them, just for you, there's also a grid function on the site.

>>51563085
They don't have to be ancestral spirits. Just fluff 'em as general purpose spirits.

Unless I'm misremembering.

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Few days ago I posted that one of my players wanted his character to make a pact with a spirit from the plane of fire. I found a homebrew class online and modified it some to match our ideas. This is my first attempt at homebrewing a class though so I have no idea how unbalanced it is.

The Spiritualist makes a pact with a spirit and over time can perform rituals to sacrifice player stats and give them to the spirit. Basically the spiritualist is a glass character with a little spellcasting ability, but the spirit is a massive damage dealer.

Feedback would be greatly appreciated

I rolled a grizzled old dragonborn paladin for Cuse of Strahd and I'm having a blast hamming it up being a beacon of light for everyone around me, and calling Strahd out for hiding in the shadows like the pussy he is.

Why are paladins so much fun?

>>51563178
or were you looking for stuff for use with miniatures?

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Can a Monk Minotaur use his horns as a weapon and still utilize martial arts? Thinking about making a Monkotaur.

Can a simulacrum develop free will? What happens to a simulacrum when the creator dies?

>>51563274
>>51563214
roll20, basically I'm looking for pieces to build dungeons or premade dungeon layouts

>>51563236
Like, say, a small host of spirits that fuck around near him seeing him rage and realizing that it's time to have some fun?

>>51562484
Good for outfitting armies, only cost 5gp or whatever.

>>51563279
He can use his horns to make an unarmed attack and have it count as a mount weapon. Or use the d10 and have it count as a weapon, but not monk, attack.

>>51563298
There's a link to battlemap stuff for roll 20 in the discord, otherwise I don't know.

>>51563279
>>51563346
>Horns. You are never unarmed. You are proficient with your horns, which are a melee weapon that deals 1d10 piercing damage. Your horns grant you advantage on all checks made to shove a creature, but not to avoid being shoved yourself.
>You are never unarmed.

I've had a lot of people ask me recently for newbie DM tips. My top 3 answers are:

* Stop saying no to players, and find creative ways to say yes.
* Steal everything; names, ideas, plots, items, whatever.
* Just play. You learn so much more about how to DM, your particular style, your parties style, what works and what doesn't than if you spend all your time preparing.


What would be your elevator / 30 second pitch version of advice for new DM's?

>>51563387
You can make unarmed attacks even when you have weapons equipped.

>>51563181
True but it can be un-fun to be less effective than everyone else. Plus there's this part of me that feels like it's "wrong." Powergaming mindset I suppose.

>>51563085
Well, as stated earlier, if you're a martial and have ASI's, it's mechanically the strongest feat for martials.
Also, if you want to be optimal, why would you use anything but polearms?

>>51563387
An unarmed strike is just an attack without a weapon or spell.
So no they can make unarmed strikes.

>>51563562
Well, I never said optimal. I'm just trying to listen to fun ideas.

>>51555274
Has anyone made character sheet generator for UA classes yet?

>>51563574
Why can you make unarmed attacks if you're never unarmed? What is this wording even, then? What's the purpose?

>>51563413
>>51563574
Monks lose certain features if they are not 'unarmed or wielding only monk weapons'.

If having the horns counts as wielding a non-monk weapon, the minotaur is fucked.

If it doesn't count as wielding a weapon, the minotaur must ALWAYS have a monk weapon in their hands in order to gain benefits.

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>>51563672
>Why can you make unarmed attacks if you're never unarmed?
Common sense answer? By punching.

>>51563667
Actually, better yet. Is there premade character sheet resource of UA classes? My player ended up on the Colosseum I and I want to throw in so UA with actually putting too much working making the NPC

>>51563781
>never unarmed
>never
That's not now "sense" works.

>>51563865
An unarmed strike can be made even when you have a weapon, it's just a punch, kick, headbutt, etc. There is no rule and never has been a 5e rule saying that an unarmed strike requires you to be unarmed.

Does somebody took a look on Tales of the Yawning Portal?
Is any good?

>>51563387
You're reading way too much into the sentence used for flavor.

>>51563279
>Can a Monk Minotaur use his horns as a weapon and still utilize martial arts?

I looked this up this afternoon. The answer is no. Claws, horns, and teeth are considered not unarmed attack. But, as all rules, ask your DM.

>>51563943
It doesn't come out for almost two months, anon.

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>>51563865
>he has fists with nothing in them but for some reason is unable to punch
Apply brain. Monk powers aren't granted by gods or something that'll be finicky over the definition of what being "armed" is. It's all about ki and training to use unarmed combat abilities.

>you're carrying a letter-opener in your satchel
>that could act as an improvised weapon and might even get proficiency if you're good with daggers
>therefore you're technically armed and can't use monk abilities

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>>51563261
Bump

Things I'm concerned about:
>Spell progression still too high when you consider the player also has a meat grinder companion
>Fire Spirit damage too high
>No idea what to do about high level features because I've only played up to level 8 in other campaigns, more than likely this one won't make it that far either though

Fast forwarding three weeks on a caravan job. I've written a one page narrative of the group leaving the town, the journey, and the new town they are going to.

Is this enough or should I make fake rolls behind the screen? Or make the players roll like a Survival or something. Any interesting ideas?

I don't want to do random bandit encounters that will only take up time.

>>51564435
Last portion will be galloping to reach a place in time.

Should I do a Con save or get 1 Exhaustion?

>>51558807
Nat 20 on a death save revives with 1 hp, otherwise i'd rule drowning is at the end of a round, so 3 successes would stabilize. And then they would continue drowning unless helped.

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How do I continue my campaign /5eg/? We finisehd OotA a year ago and everyone's at 14 level. Did the Demogorgon battle as the finale. I'm thinking of having sending them some thousand years back to the past and do some stuff there. Has anyone here done anything similar?

>>51564435
You could have them track resources but that's a bit tedious. Throw in one combat encounter and some narative encounters about what they find along the way, possibly to use as foreshadowing (tracks of large creatures or from marching in file, burned settlements etc). What I like to do when traveling i to tell them about the highlight of the day, 'you saw a pretty waterfall to the south' or 'some cunt was watching you'

>>51564435
>caravan sees fit to hire guards
>entirely safe route, no monsters, road blocks, detours, or highwaymen

Why would your merchants hire an adventuring group when the road is clearly patrolled by the authorities?

>>51564739
why hire security guards to watch your stuff if you have locks on your building?

>>51564739
It's quite a crowded group. Lots of guards. Unless a whole thieves' guild come at them, no bandit it stealing anything.

I also didn't say there was no bandits, I just don't want to play the encounter because it's not that interesting. The narration includes some conflicts but they were taken care of as necessary.

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Despite fucking everything else up, Paizo did get it right with their adorable halflings.

What are some good ideas for a heavy-roleplay, light-on-combat cooldown session? My party took the last session squarely on the chin and are probably combat'd out for a while.

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I hate Adventurers League so fucking much

Why do I get a migraine every time I DM? My party isn't even that annoying. Although they're kinda shit at the game, but that doesn't bother me.

But wow my head is throbbing right now.

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>printer won't stop fucking up the character sheets that get printed out
>have to print out a test page and scan it in to re-align its shit
>it refuses to accept them and just wastes color ink for no reason
is it a chaotic evil act to murder a printer

>>51564961
It's possible it's related to the clattering of the dice. I've found that bothers me sometimes if I'm already, like, teetering on the edge of a migraine.

>>51563112
I'll roll with it some. I'm actually making the city be ruled by neutral and good undead. Bunch of mercs and knights and shit that were too noble to just die and let orcus take over the Raven Queen's throne so they got their asses back up after death and kept fighting. Been a few thousand years so they've got city management down to a T, if a bit old fashioned. Vampire lord is actually going to be the most active of all the rulers since vampiric weaknesses. I'm also tempted to call them by their famous names. Like the Strahd, Acerak, Soth, all that shit but I don't want vecna to be good under any circumstance so i'd have to come up with an actual lich.

>>51564961
Playing it never gave me headaches but I haven't really played that much anyway.

Running melts your brain if you all have a free day and you say fuck it and play for like 8 hours with no break.

I need to teach myself to stop at 4 hours.

>>51564990
It's a construct, and an malevolent one at that.

>>51564961
It's usually because you go 200% observant.
When you play, you usually only have to pay attention to the DM and yourself, when you're the DM you have to pay attention to EVERYTHING.

>>51564920
Why?

>>51563393
"Have Fun".

>>51564920
There's no reason to subject yourself to that torment when online games are a thing. Clearly you have an internet connection.

Does anyone have topside digital tokens of yuan-ti malison and pureblood? They'd be really appreciated.

>>51561512
I have never thought about it before but I agree

>>51565146
>DM for adventurers league
Lately I've had to put up with a serious amount of magic item bloat, but because the game has a variety of restrictions, I can't really compensate outside of either adding additional monsters into fights or increasing the HP of monsters and making fights drag out far longer than they should.

But worse than that are the power gamers who are cheesing the system to get particular combinations of magic items and basically making whatever party they happen to be in useless by comparison.

In short, it leads to an unfun experience for some of my players and myself whenever this happens.

>>51565505
Online games with randos are often terrible. But I'm also jaded by my own experiences.

>>51558209
If they are too afraid to go into a goblin cave then they have no business being adventurers. Run a potato farming sim instead.

>>51565751
What that anon is complaining about not existing is literally Land Druid though.

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Whats the best (read: most flavourful) way to build a viking?

Full Battlemaster?
Barbarian?
Valor Bard?
Some sort of hybrid of the above?

Give me ideas /tg/ you're my only hope

>>51565995
Definitely some kind of barbarian, possibly multiclassed with fighter.

>>51565817
Are there blanket rules for AL that everyone needs to keep in mind? ie,can't cheese the system for particular combos of magic items?

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>>51565995
I actually made a viking-inspired Primal Path, though I'm not 100% happy with it.

I'd probably go with a Barbarian, though.

>>51565995
Fighter, single level dip of barbarian.

>>51565995
Barbarian with 1 or 2 levels of fighter and Shield Master. Battleaxe and Handaxe as main weapons.

>>51565938
This to be honest.

>>51566049
Why is there no Berserker Archetype for fighter?

>>51565817
What restrictions? Is AL just something to make PCs feel mighty and think they can just breeze through combat encounters?

>>51566032
Not really. There's certain caveats such as
>Avoid disclosing the location of magic items in particular adventures
but secrets really aren't in this day and age, and
>Each magic item you obtain counts towards a "magic item count", and if a magic item is awarded in an adventure, unless everyone agrees, the player with the lowest magic item count gets it
But magic item trading is allowed and there's a few modules that offer some rather ridiculous magic items.
So often times we'll see fighters and/or paladins tooling around with a 25+ AC and a bunch of high saves from either feat, ASI, or other magic items they might have obtained. And the only option to deal with them is "adjust the adventure according to the guidelines" which often is "add similar monsters or increase HP" which doesn't solve the issue of dealing with these PCs.

>>51566098
It wasn't meant to be, but there aren't very many control mechanisms in place. And they recently allowed a thing to where you can simply 'buy' +1 weapons or +1 armor (of any type), so there are some players who simply have a standard 21 AC before feats and spells.

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>>51558209
>im dming for my family for the first time
I've been considering this, but the most involved game they've ever played was Catan.

>>51565992
I think what that anon is saying is that Wild Shape should not be a core part of the druid, it should be restricted to one particular Circle.

>>51561512
I disagree. While I don't love Wild Shape's implementation either, without it the druid would essentially be either "nature-flavored wizard" or "nature-flavored cleric who doesn't heal as much". There needs to be something else to the druid that defines it, like Metamagic, Channel Divinity, or Bardic Inspiration for the sorcerer, cleric, and bard.

>>51566098
>Is AL just something to make PCs feel mighty and think they can just breeze through combat encounters?
AFAIK, it was meant to solve an issue regarding people who often come and go, and also garner more store attendance (which is no longer the case, since an AL game can now be done without requiring a store)

>>51566080
>>51566049
This is the struggle im facing.

Do I go barb and dip fighter, or fighter and dip barb.

CHOICES

>>51566126
Jesus fuck, why do they allow magic items in AL aside from story-relevant ones?

i.e.
>this sword makes killing a particular enemy or character in this adventure much easier
rather than
>it's a greatsword, but it's 4d6 damage instead of 2d6 damage, bypasses standard weapon immunity and has +2 damage and +2 to hit!!!

>>51566231
There's not much point to dipping fighter as a barbarian, really, unless you're looking for a critfishing build in which case it's 3 levels for champion and the rest of the way barbarian for crits galore.

>>51566126
>>51566203
Sounds about right when someone was saying AL was also meant to appeal to the increasing proportion of casual gamers; at least they are thinking as a party and not trying to win it alone.
But it really sounds like AL rewards the "win at D&D" mentality.

Considering that, shouldn't DMs running AL also be able to adjust combat encounters accordingly to make them more of a challenge? Cos it sounds like combat might get boring fast.

>>51566245
>>51566231
Well, I gave it a bit of thought and dipping in fighter just for action surge might not be too bad either, for the following reasons:

1. While before I was thinking 'if you want action surge, just go fighter and get 3 attacks on your actoin surge', at least barbarian can use advantage and +rage damage on each action surge attack.
2. Barbarian doesn't really need too many levels beyond 5 anyway, I suppose. They're free enough to multcilass a bit, unlike a caster who'd be delaying important spells and more spell slots. Does mean less rages if you're in a resource-intensive game, though.
3. As above, >>51566245 critfishing builds.

>>51566245
Part of it is due to the allowance of hardcovers in AL, which means that anything WotC says is cool, works in AL. So there are some people who broke Princes of the Apocalypse and took the legendary weapons out of them instead of doing what you're supposed to with them, as one such example. Nevermind the weapons findable in Curse of Strahd.

Storm King's Thunder made things even worse by allowing 'randomized items' from the tables. So there's been a lot of "oh yeah I just happened to roll this combination of items for my table" from DMs, and then blaming the administrators of AL or the book itself for allowing this to happen. Case in point, it's possible to get a bag of beans from SKT, then use them to create a pyramid or two with mummy lords in them, who then drop items from table I of the DMG. Which, if you don't have it on hand, contains the "fuck you" list of items like Vorpal Sword and Holy Avenger. It still has to be rolled for, but there's nothing stopping a DM from pretending to roll.

And while one might say "But that only benefits the players, so why would a DM do this?", it's because a DM who runs enough sessions can pull any one magic item from a session for their own use on a character.

It's absolutely fucking retarded.

>>51566303
>Considering that, shouldn't DMs running AL also be able to adjust combat encounters accordingly to make them more of a challenge?
RAW from the administrators, the only things that can be adjusted is the addition of monsters "as long as they are thematic to the adventure, ie. no faeries in a zombie-themed adventure" and the total HP of any given monster.

That hasn't stopped me from adjusting monsters as I see fit for my games and even creating custom monster blocks that still fit the theme, but since the players at my hardcover table are all okay with it, and it's always that same group of players, I can get away with it. I can't easily do the same when I run the 4-hour sessions for randos, because they might complain to the organizer or to the admins. While they don't have power over me, they do have some power over the store that I run games at.

>>51566372
That's fucked up. Why would people do this? Why game the system?

Is there any way to, canonically, kill a "great old one"

I want my player to be a god

>>51566470
nice boat

>>51566203
>since an AL game can now be done without requiring a store
Holy shit, so I can actually mark all the stuff I run at home as AL since i'm just running SKT with relevant AL thrown in, and me/my players could bring a character to an AL game and have it count officially? That's so weird and easy to cheat, goddamn.

>>51566453
TL:DR; "Winning at D&D".

The long explanation is that people just really want to feel self-important. Having someone talk about how they can roll massive damage, or that they can break the game with the infernal sight + darkness combo, things like that to affirm that they're amazing at a game that doesn't really matter in the long run. But that's just my opinion, anyway.

>>51566483
You still need DCI numbers for each player and yourself, and log sheets. But they are rarely checked unless it's something particularly ridiculous, like entering a session with a +3 weapon, +3 armor, +3 shield, all at once or something.

>>51566483
>>51566555
Yeah, well that all seems rather sad and pathetic.

>>51566480
thanks

>>51566470
Canonically outright KILL one?
Wish one out of existance and pray that it works. Pretty much the only way feasible.

>>51566470
Someone made an avatar of Nyarlathotep in a really well-done fan supplement.

>>51566480
>>51566683
The boat only caused Cthulhu's corporeal form to disperse, and the stars weren't right. It only inconvenienced him.

>>51566555
>or that they can break the game with the infernal sight + darkness combo

Always seems to me like this hinders the party too much to actually be that useful in most situations. If you can go off and deal with one guy while being roving darkness that's one thing. But if you're in the thick of it chances are you're also making it so the rest of your party can't see as well.

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>>51555555
OOOHHHH BABY

>>51566818
This.
It's a shit combo only meant for munchkins really.

>>51558539
Big waste, especially for something that is just a mere vanity stat.

>>51557324

Blizzard seems small and underpowered...

Being paralyzed is a huge effect, but a ton of shit you're fighting at that level has such high saving throws, and some things just have the "auto succeed" ability.

And only 30ft? at level 17?

Fuck that I want the whole countryside engulfed in a blizzard.

at least 100 foot radius centered around the caster?

>>51566093
>tell Fighter to take the Berserker Barbarian archetype
>give them Rage without any of its other benefits (no Rage damage, no resistance, no Strength advantage)
>call it Frenzy

>>51566994
I was asking why it's not an archetype for the Fighter, I wasn't telling him to take it, Berserkers aren't Barbarians they're Fighters.

>>51564883
KYOOT¬! A cute!

>>51564883
>pouring from one mug to the other
for what purpose

>>51567213
One mixer, one serving.
>do you even tavern bro?

>>51564609
Lolth was the one behind the whole "Demons invade the underdark" thing. Have the party go after her.

>>51567213
Mixers, do you even bar/pub/tavern?

>>51567261
Lolth is kind of retarded.
>my braindead followers have all these obscene racial advantages and fantasy equipment and other Mary Sue bullshit but they can't even keep their own domains together, let alone the rest of the Underdark
>what can I do to help this along and further my power
>I know
>I'll release millions of chaotic demons beholden to other powers that aren't me

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Yo me hearties. Me and the party just hopped on a ship and are about to take part in a wacky racers/mad max race across the sea to a death tower that grants a wish to whoever gets to the top first.

I'm party cleric, 10th level. I can think of a few spells that'd be useful at sea--gust of wind, control water, water walk...attack spells that have some good range, etc.

Any other spells I should make sure to have at the ready? DM already said the mending cantrip won't let me heal the boat much, which sucks.

>>51567623
>DM already said the mending cantrip won't let me heal the boat much, which sucks.

Be Forge Cleric instead

Abuse Fabricate

>>51561864
Fighters are great, dude. Ever notice how all "fighters suck lmao" posts ignore their huge attack rate and the fact that the first enemy in the first 5e full module ever published is an enemy with a greatsword that deals an extra +2d6 damage per hit? Now multiply that by the fighter's bountiful hit rate. Yeah.

"Fighters suck" arguments assume they will never find a high damage magic weapon, rather the exact opposite assumption as in 3e and 4e.

What would be a cool item to allow a paladin to use Lay on Hands and their Channel Divinity with a bonus action?

>>51567699
I'm already a light cleric. This is the latest arc in a already long campaign.

Are there any other 'boat healing' spells aside from Fabricate, which I don't think I have access to?

>>51567740
No, moron, "fighters suck" arguments assume you want to do literally anything else in the game but fight shit AND that you're ever going to hit level 11 and play for a meaningful number of sessions beyond that.

For 99% of the game and in more than 90% of all campaigns, Fighters don't attack any more often than any other martial with Extra Attack.

>>51567755
The Holy Libram of Tranquility Monks Can Do This So Why Can't I

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>artificer makes a robe of useful items for his 5th-level item
>party gets into ranged battle through a 10-foot doorway
>pulls out an iron door and blocks it
>pulls out a pit and puts it in front of the door
>archer uses a smoking arrow to cover the top of the pit with smoke
>ranger throws caltrops into pit
>enemies burst open doorway and immediately fall into pit
This is some next-level chucklefuckery, I tell you what.

>>51567773
>level 1-10 is 99% of the game

Wut

What exactly is the feature the other combat classes are getting that is soooooo great prior to level 11?

> assume you want to do literally anything else in the game but fight shit

This element is totally retarded as well. Fighters were always just for fighting shit. As in 5e, they have some half assed skills/proficiencies occasionally, but that genre of anti fighter whining is just left over trauma from people who suffered childhood abuse from 3e.

>>51567832
Level 1-10 isn't even 99% of the game, level 1-8 is.

>>51567761
If your boat catches fire, any spell that creates water and douses open flames could save your bacon.

>>51567829
Makes me think of Felix the Cat.

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>>51567832
>Fighters were always just for fighting shit.
This wasn't even the case in D&D, cockgargler. Note that that's D&D 1E, not even AD&D. Go look up what a Lord (Fighting Man 9) was getting up to.

No one should be relegated entirely to beating things up in combat when all the other classes that have massive potential for playing around in the social and exploration pillars, through features or spells, can also contribute meaningfully to combat.

>>51567773
I think they're pretty good at lower levels.
Level 1 they have pretty good hp and second wind gives them survivability at a time when healing is at a premium. They also start with a fighting style; dueling is very strong at level one. +2 damage is pretty big, and also getting the +2 AC from shield means they will have probably the best AC in the party at level 1.
At level 2 action surge gives them good nova potential.
BM at level 3 combines nicely with action surge for trip into any other bonus damage maneuver for even bigger nova.

After that it kind of falls off; it's with good reason that 2 level dip in fighter is a thing.
After 3 moon druid probably takes the cake for low-level monster, but fighter can still bring the pain with even bigger action surges.

Either way, fighters will have trouble at anything other than hulk smashing shit unless the DM lets them roll shit like Intimidation(Strength) or give bonus points for RP.

>>51567910
we're actually on the boat that's built from fireproof wood.

Being a light Cleric though, I am looking forward to setting some OTHER boats on fire.

>>51567761

Hmm.. Useful Sea Spells in Cleric's list

Thaumaturgy lets your voice be heard past a storm

Destroy Water lets you keep clear of a hole while you patch it

Burning Hands lets you weld shit

Augury for Storms

Control Water for controling water

Commune for Poseidon Deals

Hallow to keep monster the fuck out of your boat


Planar Ally can be told to fix the fuck up your boat. Level 6 spell

>>51568000
They're not bad, but everyone predicates their "Fighters are great!" arguments on their having four attacks. (Comparitively) no one plays at a point where even three attacks is the case. /5eg/ in general has a problem with theorycrafting builds and class power at levels that they're simply not going to experience.

>hey guys my mate is running a lost mines of phandelver game, should i take some bard levels before or after i get my third attack???
>i'm playing hoard of the dragon queen, what paladin archetype has the best capstone??
>you'll be real glad you picked eldritch knight when you're fighting strahd, being able to cast haste on yourself is godlike

>>51567983

>This wasn't even the case in D&D, cockgargler.

Absolutely. You new school kiddies need to check out the OSR threads sometime. You need to go check out how things went in TSR. Read 1e, 2e, OD&D, BECMI, B/x, you name it. Its good for you. You people have been traumatized by 3e, and still emotionally react to everything as if its 3e.

>Go look up what a Lord (Fighting Man 9) was getting up to.

If he makes a stronghold, he gets some pretty garbage followers (probably nothing he didn't already have, though) and possibly 1-3 decent ones. That's still not anywhere near close to him having anything to do out of combat, and it takes much more work to get to level 9 and clear the terrain for a stronghold in 1e than it does to get to level 11.

I'm guessing you have literally no fucking clue how much work it takes to clear the terrain for a single stronghold in 1e. Suffice to say, if you START stronghold clearing at level 1, you might be done by the time you're level 9.

>No one should be relegated entirely to beating things up in combat

That's how fighters have always been. They have slightly more to do out of combat than in old school (a few skills). That's about it.

>>51568034
Yeah, and I assume Control Water will do wonders for you. 25% chance to capsize any Huge or smaller boat sounds great.

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Hey, hey, would you count this as leather armor?

>>51568076
Can someone in the anti fighter cap please point out what feature they get in 1-10 that is so great belonging to another, similar class, combat wise?

Or is the argument solely traumatized 3e babbies with no substance?

>>51568087
>XP is gained at a constant rate
>sessions cover the same period of time
>hirelings don't exist
Not only are you a fucking moron for not wanting Fighters to do shit outside of combat, it seems like you don't even understand how to DO things outside of combat. Just fuck off already. And while you're at it, stop doublespacing your quotes and replies, holy shit you're wasting my monitor ink.

>>51568133
It's banded mail.

>>51568142

I don't understand most of your projections, but

my post makes explicit reference to hirelings,

as in the much masturbated about, rarely

achieved level 9 follower pile is generally

nothing the PCs won't already have had.


Anyway, I can tell that you are badly triggered

due to having someone disagree with you,

but it is important to remember that your

argument

is

totally

without

substance

have a nice day.

>>51568087
3e was good in popularizing D&D again, it's extremely significant in that it kept D&D relevant. Without the success of 3e, we wouldn't have 5e.
3e is a mistake because it's mechanics are absolute horseshit. And it's corpse is sustained by PF.

>>51568168
>he doesn't even know what "explicit" means

>>51568175
So you're saying Paizo should be burned to the ground?

>>51568175
If only WotC had actually learned from 2e, as opposed to taking the worst bits of Skills and Powers and hitting it with the worst bits of the kit system.

>>51568212
They should relocate their HQ and staff to somewhere in the Yucatan and a cenote should open up under them and plunge them into a sulphuric acid abyss.

>>51568175
I don't actually dislike 3e, for what it is (I have played 2e extensively, and have great love for OD&D, 1e, 3.5, 4e and 5e), I just hate how people can't let go of their deep trauma from 3rd edition.

>>51568244
Damn that's even worse, I like it Anon.

>>51568076
But that wasn't in my argument at all.
My argument discussed pre-5, exclusively.

What I'm trying to get at is that Action Surge makes them competitive at the lower levels. I would even argue that at 5/6 they're pretty competitive, combat-wise, due to the way action surge effects their burst potential, particularly combo'd with BM maneuvers. If the DM is generous with short rests, it becomes even better.

Plus, if you're really serious about powergaming that combat effectiveness, there's always Archery-style-sharpshooter-dual-hand-crossbow-master fuckery.

I'm not saying it's THE BEST, since that is OBVIOUSLY bard :^) particularly since the class' out-of-combat abilities are lacking, but even then it can be fun.

>>51555274
>What are you expecting from UA Sorcerer?

I would really like shadow to be made into something that isn't broken.
I've always thought shadowfell stuff seemed bretty cool.

Wat think

>Thief broken down into other archetypes
>Fast Hands goes to Mastermind for things like healer kits (AT gets a better version of it anyway so no harm here imo)
>Second Story Work given to Assassin
>Supreme Sneak given to Scout
>UMD given to AT
>Thief Reflex given to Mastermind

>>51568378
>he thinks the UA isn't going to get cancelled due to the Super Bowl
watch for this

>>51568269
The only reason why anyone truly hates 3rd edition is because there are people who still like 3rd edition

Personally, I find looking at people who like 3e to be like looking at a teenaged version of myself, and what I see is horrifying. I will forever thank Paizo for fucking up so much that it pushed me to try other RPGs instead of remaining stuck in the OGL quagmire

>>51568108
Wait, Control Water has that verbage attached to the spell? I can't find where it says something like that, is it a homebrew thing?

>>51568522
>Flood. You cause the water level of all standing water in the area to rise by as much as 20 feet. If the area includes a shore, the flooding water spills over onto dry land. If you choose an area in a large body of water, you instead create a 20-foot tall wave that travels from one side of the area to the other and then crashes down. Any Huge or smaller vehicles in the wave’s path are carried with it to the other side. Any Huge or smaller vehicles struck by the wave have a 25 percent chance of capsizing. The water level remains elevated untl the spell ends or you choose a different effect. If this effect produced a wave, the wave repeats on the start of your next turn while the flood effect lasts.

Control Water is stupid powerful any time you've got water nearby.

Does magic in D&D canonically come from a magical plane of some sort?

>>51568588
It doesn't canonically come from everywhere, since there's no actual canon.

If you mean Forgotten Realms, the Setting, then magic there comes from The Weave, which is basically the Force.

>>51568569
Fuck that's awesome. I can do a flood, either capsize or push another ship 300 feet, and if they're still up I just transition the flood into a whirlpool and stick them there.

>>51568588
It depends on your setting.

In Forgotten Realms (Toril / Faerun / Sword Coast), the closest thing to a standard in 5E, magic doesn't come from anywhere but is an intrinsic part of reality. Certain PARTS of magic come from various places (you evoke flame from the Plane of Fire, you conjure water from the Plane of Water; it isn't simply transformed from materials in the world through normal natural processes or teleported from nearby) and certain spells go through other planes (teleportation gates you through the Astral Plane like a shortcut), but magic itself is just a basic physical law and "arcane energy" is literally everywhere.

Originally, casters (and most creatures) just yanked this shit out of rocks, empty air, themselves, whatever, but this tended to break everything and blow up spectacularly. So a Goddess (Mystryl) went and made a bunch of rules and an "interface" for controlling magical energies called the Weave. Whereas before people would just reach out and rip a hole in the thin cloth that separated normal space from the magic everywhere and let it spill out uncontrolled, Mystryl replaced that cloth with steel and taught everyone how to make little spigots they could ram into surface and open the tap for. That's what Wizards and shit study to do and Sorcerers unknowingly, instinctively manage and all of that. Everyone gets their shit through the Weave now, and disruptions to it stop magic (an anti-magic field is just a "no access to the Weave" zone).

Again, magic doesn't come "from the Weave", the Weave is simply how you access it.

In a setting like Known World / Mystara, magical energies are also everywhere, but come in a variety of flavors which can wax in wane in amount and power. The ultimate module of the whole setting involved a new force which was actively destroying one flavor of magic (the Sphere of Energy), much to the consternation of all the Immortals (gods) who were part of it.

>>51568740
>>51568604
Thanks anons

Currently a level 7 Rogue with 18 DEX.

Should I take a Feat or bump dex to 20?

I already have Magic Initiate and Resilient-CON

>>51568917
20 Dex.

For a Revised Ranger with dragons as greater favored enemy... would you rule Tiamat falls under that? She's listed as a fiend, but I mean...

>>51568970
she's always been classified as a dragon in prior editions

>>51568954
I was thinking either that or Spell Sniper for BoomBlade.

Also related- if daggers dont count for Sharpshooter when thrown its logical that they do count for a 10 foot BoomBlade, no?

>>51568740
Another alternate worth mentioning - Dark Sun, where magic comes from literally ripping out the life force of living things nearby - usually the plant life, where it exists. The planet was mostly-psionics for a long time, then magic was discovered and there were giant wars fought with it so the world is a giant magical wasteland now. Wizards are divided into 'preservers' - who try to be careful about how much life they take - and 'defilers' - who don't give a damn, and I think by the old rules get a boost by wrecking nearby life.
Also, in Planescape, they point out that the rules tend to change from plane to plane, so if you want to be able to use magic the way you're used to, you need...it's been a while, but I think it was called a Planar Key or something like that. And even then, some rules changes on the weird outer and inner planes were unbreakable.

Am I going to be an edgy faggot for trying to play a rorschach inspired rogue detective in my LMoP campaign?

I really wanna play a detective, and thinking about different kinds for inspiration I thought Rorschach might be pretty fun, but I don't want to annoy everyone with my edge. What sort of warning signs should I watch myself for?

>>51569203
>Planar Key
Pretty sure that's right.

The Outlands had the best effect on magic: The closer you get to the spire in the centre, the more spell levels you lose access to.

>>51561043
But
>everyone prepares their spells
is demonstrably untrue.

Is there any rules for garroting somebody in 5e?

Need to sneaky kill some rude dudes without blood going everywhere.