Now, I like making my own items as rewards for the players. But, I guess I just don't know how to make great items for casters. I mean, I can make interesting and good melee and ranged weapons but damnit, I can't think of anything particularly awesome when it comes to magic-user stuff.
Any suggestions?
Defensive gear is good, but cater it to the caster. For instance...a robe with blur or the like is much better if the caster seems to get nailed with arrows than a bracer with +2 AC or something
Odds and ends for familiars are good too, depending on the familiar. If the familiar is a frog, not so much. But a cat with a collar that makes them grow to tiger size is cool. That sort of thing.
sigpic courtesy of This Guy, original modified by me
Copy stuff.
Is it weird that I like to fit my PCs into like...catagories? Kinda like...Ok, this guy does this a lot, I'll give him items geared towards this, but in a more elemental way...like, say, giving PC#X a bunch of cool Fire damage gear and whatnot.
I dunno, that was a random thought.
Kind of a different subject...or two...three.
1) What's the rules on Out of Initiative Combat? Or does it exist? Let's say a Rogue or something is sneaking and the opposed fails their roll against it. What rules apply if the Rogue wants to fuckin jump said target? Does the Rogue initate combat and automatically get Initiative #1 and a sneak attack?
2) Do you make up your own house rules and whatnot? I'm such a loose DM and I make special rules and stuff, I dunno, since I only play with my close friends, it's all we're used to playing.
3) Do you write your own mod? If so, what problems do you run into? Do you try and coerce your PCs into following it, or do you write many many branching paths? I write my own and ran a VERY awesome Star Wars campaign, and this Eberron one is already full of Conspericies, backstabbing and mystery.
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OtakuPenguin's fortune cookie read:
1) What's the rules on Out of Initiative Combat? Or does it exist? Let's say a Rogue or something is sneaking and the opposed fails their roll against it. What rules apply if the Rogue wants to fuckin jump said target? Does the Rogue initate combat and automatically get Initiative #1 and a sneak attack?2) Do you make up your own house rules and whatnot? I'm such a loose DM and I make special rules and stuff, I dunno, since I only play with my close friends, it's all we're used to playing.
3) Do you write your own mod? If so, what problems do you run into? Do you try and coerce your PCs into following it, or do you write many many branching paths? I write my own and ran a VERY awesome Star Wars campaign, and this Eberron one is already full of Conspericies, backstabbing and mystery.
1: In one of the early chapters of the DMs Guide (I don't have it handy, sorry), it talks about awareness between different forces. It's basically that whichever side is aware of the other gets a surprise round before initiative is rolled. You could also just forego initiative and once the involved characters act, they can continue to act in the same order.
2: Part of the game is to 'make it your own.' As the DM, you have the luxury of changing the game to your whims. Just a word of caution: Make sure your changes make at least some kind of sense, and make sure the players know about any changes up-front.
3: Another part of the game is making your own world and adventures. As long as your style is fun for your players, that's what matters.
In addition, all of those questions are answered in better detail in the DM's Guide. I reccommend reading through it cover-to-cover at least once.
Also, to help quick leveling in Star Wars, I hand typed all of the class tables >_<
I don't even have that sourcebook anymore...traded it straight up for Eberron, which is DnD love
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OtakuPenguin stopped staring at Deedlit long enough to write:
Ohh...I like your idea Fal...Is it weird that I like to fit my PCs into like...catagories? Kinda like...Ok, this guy does this a lot, I'll give him items geared towards this, but in a more elemental way...like, say, giving PC#X a bunch of cool Fire damage gear and whatnot.
I dunno, that was a random thought.
Kind of a different subject...or two...three.
1) What's the rules on Out of Initiative Combat? Or does it exist? Let's say a Rogue or something is sneaking and the opposed fails their roll against it. What rules apply if the Rogue wants to fuckin jump said target? Does the Rogue initate combat and automatically get Initiative #1 and a sneak attack?
2) Do you make up your own house rules and whatnot? I'm such a loose DM and I make special rules and stuff, I dunno, since I only play with my close friends, it's all we're used to playing.
3) Do you write your own mod? If so, what problems do you run into? Do you try and coerce your PCs into following it, or do you write many many branching paths? I write my own and ran a VERY awesome Star Wars campaign, and this Eberron one is already full of Conspericies, backstabbing and mystery.
1. Depends on the situation. If the guy's failed a sneak check, it means the target isn't caught off guard. Depending on how screwed things are (IE the way the guy's facing, anything in the way, how far the rogue has to move, etc), he might still get a free attack (one, non-backstab). Otherwise, no free attacks. In any case, if the rogue failed the sneak check, the guy isn't flat-footed/caught off guard, so he doesn't lose any AC.
2. House rules...let's see. Everyone says the "golden rule" is that you can change anything you don't like. That is your right. It is, however, your responsiblity to BALANCE EVERYTHING ELSE to the standard of your new rule variant. Some things aren't that big a deal. In my game, I don't emphasize spell components for arcanists. I find it aggravating. The only time spell components come into play is if it's a dire situation, or if it has an exotic spell component (tears of a firstborn giant, etc). Likewise, I don't stress ammo for people with bows and the like, unless it's special arrows (bane arrows, etc) or if they've not had a reasonable chance to make/purchase more. It's fair (important), it saves me from having to keep track of arrows on a session by session basis (minimizing GM paperwork is luv), and it makes sense to keep things rolling.
But you really need to balance things out. It's insanely easy to A. Overcomplicate things, and B. ruin the balance. D&D 3.5 is EXTREMELY well assembled, and well balanced. It runs smoothly with the existing mechanics. Tinker with them at your own peril. Don't rush into it.
Likewise...if you don't own the supplement and KNOW it like the back of your hand, don't allow it. All the rules, classes, races, etc from any non-core books are OPTIONAL. Do not feel forced to use them. This goes double, triple, quadruple, quintuple for things your players bring you. There's nothing wrong with the races and classes in the PHB. They allow for an insane amount of personalization.
Beware of gimmicks. Player gimmicks ("I'm a DROW!" "I'm like Legolas!") are bad enough, but if you're running a gimmick campaign, make sure it's a gimmick you can live with having used when your game is six months down the road. The problem with gimmicks is that they're seldom much fun when the novelty wears off or the joke has played out. It's bad when a player gets into relying on gimmicks to make himself or herself feel good about their character. It's outright destructive if the GM does it.
Don't godmode. It's tempting to have a deity directly intervene. It's tempting to try and force players to go your way. Don't do it. Have a story that has logical reasons for your players to follow the story, but understand they'll occasionally get hung up on a tangent. And sometimes what you thought was going to be a boss fight extraordinaire ends up being a fizzle (I had a displacer beast fight some lowbies once. Should've been a rough fight, but with the dice rolls in their favor and against mine, it was embarrassingly fast. I still get jokes about it from my gang, and that's cool. It's a fond memory.). You have to roll with the times you get outmaneuvered, out-thought, or just had bad luck.
3. Mod? I have my own home-grown campaign setting, complete with different origins for all the races, local religions, etc. Campaign setting building is one of the most rewarding and at the same time one of the most aggravating things you can do as a GM. Do yourself a favor if you decide to do it: Start with one or two kingdoms. Have everything go on there at first, and slooooowly build outwards from it. Look how much of FF7 took place in Midgard before you even get to the world map. Yeah. Don't rush to show off your cool stuff.
sigpic courtesy of This Guy, original modified by me
quote:
Ja'Deth Issar Ka'bael had this to say about Reading Rainbow:
1. Depends on the situation. If the guy's failed a sneak check, it means the target isn't caught off guard. Depending on how screwed things are (IE the way the guy's facing, anything in the way, how far the rogue has to move, etc), he might still get a free attack (one, non-backstab). Otherwise, no free attacks. In any case, if the rogue failed the sneak check, the guy isn't flat-footed/caught off guard, so he doesn't lose any AC.2. House rules...let's see. Everyone says the "golden rule" is that you can change anything you don't like. That is your right. It is, however, your responsiblity to BALANCE EVERYTHING ELSE to the standard of your new rule variant. Some things aren't that big a deal. In my game, I don't emphasize spell components for arcanists. I find it aggravating. The only time spell components come into play is if it's a dire situation, or if it has an exotic spell component (tears of a firstborn giant, etc). Likewise, I don't stress ammo for people with bows and the like, unless it's special arrows (bane arrows, etc) or if they've not had a reasonable chance to make/purchase more. It's fair (important), it saves me from having to keep track of arrows on a session by session basis (minimizing GM paperwork is luv), and it makes sense to keep things rolling.
But you really need to balance things out. It's insanely easy to A. Overcomplicate things, and B. ruin the balance. D&D 3.5 is EXTREMELY well assembled, and well balanced. It runs smoothly with the existing mechanics. Tinker with them at your own peril. Don't rush into it.
Likewise...if you don't own the supplement and KNOW it like the back of your hand, don't allow it. All the rules, classes, races, etc from any non-core books are OPTIONAL. Do not feel forced to use them. This goes double, triple, quadruple, quintuple for things your players bring you. There's nothing wrong with the races and classes in the PHB. They allow for an insane amount of personalization.
No no, I've got all the class books (Sword and Fist...etc) and a bunch of the others, I like them a lot. Also, I do the same as you, arrows and spell components I don't worry about if the players have had sufficient time in a town to get stuff.
A question though...how much do you make them roleplay "general" things, like, arriving in a town, RP getting the room and stuff seems pretty basic, and even though I've been doing it (DMing) for quite a while, I still sometimes think I make them do too much.
For example, pretty often, I just go around the table and ask, 'What are you doing now?" and sometimes make them be very specific.
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Beware of gimmicks. Player gimmicks ("I'm a DROW!" "I'm like Legolas!") are bad enough, but if you're running a gimmick campaign, make sure it's a gimmick you can live with having used when your game is six months down the road. The problem with gimmicks is that they're seldom much fun when the novelty wears off or the joke has played out. It's bad when a player gets into relying on gimmicks to make himself or herself feel good about their character. It's outright destructive if the GM does it.
Oh god no..no way, no drows, no other races besides the core and Eberron ones. Ugh.
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Don't godmode. It's tempting to have a deity directly intervene. It's tempting to try and force players to go your way. Don't do it. Have a story that has logical reasons for your players to follow the story, but understand they'll occasionally get hung up on a tangent. And sometimes what you thought was going to be a boss fight extraordinaire ends up being a fizzle (I had a displacer beast fight some lowbies once. Should've been a rough fight, but with the dice rolls in their favor and against mine, it was embarrassingly fast. I still get jokes about it from my gang, and that's cool. It's a fond memory.). You have to roll with the times you get outmaneuvered, out-thought, or just had bad luck.
Ok, I will admnit to doing this...98% of the time I roll for real, but sometimes, for the sake of plot, I REALLY need something to happen. I know it's a fairly weak thing if I need to rely on luck (or in this case, faking a roll) to move the plot along, but, my players like the plot more than combat anyway.
I think the reason for that is that I seem to have a large number of enemies in each encounter...how do I make combat interesting?
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3. Mod? I have my own home-grown campaign setting, complete with different origins for all the races, local religions, etc. Campaign setting building is one of the most rewarding and at the same time one of the most aggravating things you can do as a GM. Do yourself a favor if you decide to do it: Start with one or two kingdoms. Have everything go on there at first, and slooooowly build outwards from it. Look how much of FF7 took place in Midgard before you even get to the world map. Yeah. Don't rush to show off your cool stuff.
I'm using a very spliced version of the Eberron world right now and it's working out really well. Honestly though, I disagree with only a small portion of the world. Maybe it's just me, but I want massive adventure, contintent wide chases, days long journies and exotic locales!
Once more, for emphasis...
How do I make combat interesting?! OtakuPenguin fucked around with this message on 01-20-2005 at 01:59 AM.
Keep it fast paced, have your players plan action before hand.
Dont throw on a huge amount of it.
Play the monsters smart, but only when deservedly so.
Keep the idea of danger present, try and get every few fights to take one player into the negative numbers, even if you have to fudge the monsters damage or HP. Keep them on the toes.
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Elvish Crack Piper had this to say about the Spice Girls:
To keep combat interesting.Keep it fast paced, have your players plan action before hand.
Dont throw on a huge amount of it.
Play the monsters smart, but only when deservedly so.
Keep the idea of danger present, try and get every few fights to take one player into the negative numbers, even if you have to fudge the monsters damage or HP. Keep them on the toes.
I disagree with that last one. Fudging for the specific purpose of dropping a party member into neg numbers can be a terrible idea. If your players ever catch wind of the fact that you're doing that they're not going to trust you anymore. Your encounters should be built well enough so that vagaries of random chance provide the chance of PC death. Fudging it so that you drop a character every few fights can also lead to bad situations. This is especially true when you're using intelligent monsters.
If you get into the habit of dropping a character and then having an intelligent creature not take a quick swipe to finish the person, i'm assuming ECP isn't the type of DM to fudge-kill a PC every now and then, then your players are probably going to catch onto that after a while. This negates the purpose you had in fudging down to negatives anyways.
"What do you mean the DC is only 150 to get the great wyrm red dragon to become a fanatic follower of my palidin?"
God I hate that table when I am DMing... Tristan fucked around with this message on 01-20-2005 at 02:53 AM.
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Tristan obviously shouldn't have said:
Stay the hell away from +skill items. They sound cool at first, but if someone gets more then one for a skill, looking in the epic level handbook for skill DCs is never far off..."What do you mean the DC is only 150 to get the great wyrm red dragon to become a fanatic follower of my palidin?"
God I hate that table when I am DMing...
That's easy to fix. And it's already built into the game.
Enhancement bonuses of the same type do not stack. Only the highest one counts.
my Boots of Leaping and Striding. Those + Chain Shirt = Having a 40ft move without using my first level Domain slot on Longstrider.
Jargum somehow sucked me into helping him casually build this space gameing universe. Now, a continent to populate kinda sucks, but sweet jeasus, i think were up to like 7 full planets and like 5 major galactic corperations. It hurts. Saddly, now i have free time, so its gona be fun fun writeing time again.
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OtakuPenguin wrote this then went back to looking for porn:
Now, I like making my own items as rewards for the players. But, I guess I just don't know how to make great items for casters. I mean, I can make interesting and good melee and ranged weapons but damnit, I can't think of anything particularly awesome when it comes to magic-user stuff.
Coolest magic item I've ever seen custom made was a pair of gloves refered to as the Foxgloves. (The character wearing them was a fox shapeshifter from Oriential Adventures.) They allowed the use of Prestidigitation (sp?) at will. No damage, no AC, no Jedi mindtrick, but they were allways useful anyway.
Arcane spell scrolls are good. Especally for wizards that don't have that spell yet. Finding an actual spellbook can make wizards rabid with joy. If you have spellcasters that can create scrolls, finding some of the rare inks required makes for a good minor find.
Bags of holding and the like are good for anybody. Just don't give out really large ones. It's frightening what players will stick in them.
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Palador ChibiDragon probably says this to all the girls:
Bags of holding and the like are good for anybody. Just don't give out really large ones. It's frightening what players will stick in them.
My group managed to obtain a portable hole once...
That was the most interesting d% roll I ever made. It was the loot that kept on giving.
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Meow meow meow meow. Meow meow meow meow. Meow meow meow meow Densetsu meow meow meow.
My group managed to obtain a portable hole once...That was the most interesting d% roll I ever made. It was the loot that kept on giving.
Portable holes are fun. One group I was with put bookshelves in one, and made it a portable research library. Another group filled one with water, and never worried about their waterskins running out ever again.
I remember, in my oldoldold campaign, being SO DAMN HAPPY when I got a circlet that would let me cast Mage Hand at will. For nothing more than aesthetic/cool points purposes. I got to make the morning coffee with my mind, and I glee'd over it for a while. You don't have to make 'em god to make 'em love you 
.
Never happened much in the group I played with, I wasnt the DM, alot of what I say is stuff I saw him do (I doubt he fudged monster rolls, since as some of yall might remember, alot of our fighting was in. Not my fault. I blame it on the NPC's)I always liked the necklace that gave at will magehand, I would use that in so many cool ways (how much pressure can a kobolds eyelinds lift, not 5 pounds? ok, its blind)
Anyway, the idea is if your close to knocking them out do add the extra 3 or so damage, since your PC's shouldnt know the stats of monsters (god I hate people who buy monster manuals and dont plan to DM. I've read alot of DnD books, seen alot of rules, but I have never just read the monster manual to try and gain an advantage[nevermind that last session every single monster was either made up on the stop, or the DM's past creation. I did enjoy having a really seasoned game master, beat the hell out of the friends who had DM'd before we met him.)
Since spellcasters, particularly arcane casters, tend to suffer from poor AC and low hitpoints, defensive items tend to offer real benefit for them. Cloaks of elemental or poison resistance, bracers of defense, etc., tend to help them out a lot. It's also handy to offer items with See Invisibility or similar effects on occasion, because any member of the group can use them.
Any member of your party will be happy to find a Heward's Handy Haversack or Bag of Holding. As others have said, keep the quantities limited, and don't dole out the big ones too early. Nobody wants a bag of holding filled with bags of holding. By the same token, Leomund's house-in-a-box can prove useful for the city-raised wizard who hates camping in the rain.
For wizards, scrolls are a major part of the reward system. They generally need scrolls to scribe into their spellbook, and your average town doesn't stock high-end magic. Any materials required for scribing scrolls and spellbooks will also come in handy. Then there's the actual spell components for expensive spells, like pearls for Identify and diamonds for Resurrection.
If a party caster has item creation feats, they'll also need a supply of valuables, either to enhance directly or to trade for items they can enhance. Just remember to give them time to work on the crafting, too.
Never underestimate the value of an ability score booster. Skill boosters can come in handy too, particularly when it comes to knowledge skills, listen, search, and spot.
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OtakuPenguin painfully thought these words up:
How do I make combat interesting?!
Tactics, man, tactics.
Use tactics that the monsters would seem likely to perform, as well. Goblins won't fight the adventurers one-on-one, they're more likely to try to swarm and overpower one or two of them at first, then move on to the others using the same tactics.
Orcs will ambush when they can, and will likely observe the party for a bit beforehand. Who looks like a challenge for the orcs? Who looks like easy pickings? The fighter and cleric are decked out in metal armour and carry big weapons, so the orcs will likely try to avoid fighting them at first. The rogue and mage carry small, simple weapons, and wear little or no armour. The orcs will try to take these two out first, if possible, as they look like the easiest targets. Sure, the rogue can dodge all of their attacks and the mage can fling fireballs around, but the orcs probably won't know that at first glance.
Don't make the monsters hammer on the fighter just because he's the tank. Yes, the fighter is the tank, but it isn't your job to keep the monsters on the fighter, it's the fighter's job to keep the monsters on himself. If an enemy sees greater tactical value in attacking a different party member, then they should do that.
Throwing highly intellgent monsters at the party (eg. Mind Flayers) can be fun, but it's honestly rare that such an intelligent monster will fight the adventurers directly. A mind flayer is more likely to try to enslave other, more combat-oriented monsters, and send them to fight. Also, intelligent monsters like setting up traps and ambushes to grab an easy tactical advantage.
Honestly, ambushes make combat very interesting, and give the scout something to do. The party's just walking through a forest and chatting, moving to their next destination. It's quiet. Suddenly, a twig snaps, and ten or fifteen orcs come outta feckin' nowhere. Instant setup for an exciting battle.
Our group is heavily combat oriented, so I keep things interesting by sending a lot of humans/NPCs at them, rather than monsters. Goblins get old fast, but a party of 'evil' NPCs that has access to high level magic and is led by Riven, Kicker of Babies is a lot more personal.
Make sure they have a reason to be fighting - why are the orcs ambushing them, anyways? It sounds silly, but combat for a purpose is much more fun than just random combat because it's been two sessions since the fighter got to stab something.
I don't depend on exotic locales very much, only because the PCs usually find a way around them. One of the best encounters I ever had was my party, up against two powered up skeleton guards, and a 5th level rogue in a graveyard. It should have been easy, except that the rogue would keep sneaking away, hiding behind gravestones and picking off PCs while the skeletons kept them pinned down in the middle. There was nothing really unusual there, the NPCs just made good use of terrain.
Keep your players from trying to brute force things - discourage it. Put them in situations where the tactics they usually use don't work. Send them up against enemies that already know the wizard loves fireball and the fighter likes to use Combat Expertise.
Just be careful, because if the players aren't expecting the guy in platemail to have a cloak of resistance +5 and a ring of evasion, you can accidently wipe a party... Really easily.
And finally, if you use NPCs, take a very good look at their magic items. Remember that if by some fluke the PCs kill the NPC before they should, they'll be getting all those items. That's less of a problem if you're willing to fudge, but I'm a big stickler for playing by the dice.
Hope this helps. 
Ebberon is a neat setting, it should give you most all the setting you need. Eventually, as a DM, you will probably want to write your own campaign setting. Ja'deth is right - its incredibly rewarding. They way I start off is by making a broad picture of what the world is, than working with the PCs characters as they make them. Whichever parts of the world they are from become the most detailed, and involved in world events.
For combat, I will pass on to you the advice a great DM gave me once: for every adventure (not session) there should be at least one encounter they can easily defeat, many well balanced encounters, and one they should run away from if they're smart.
quote:
OtakuPenguin spewed forth this undeniable truth:
I'm using a very spliced version of the Eberron world right now and it's working out really well. Honestly though, I disagree with only a small portion of the world. Maybe it's just me, but I want massive adventure, contintent wide chases, days long journies and exotic locales!Once more, for emphasis...
How do I make combat interesting?!
Okay...let's see...
Roleplaying "mundane" stuff is something you work them into. It's easier with online games simply because people can hide behind their computer for some anonymity. But give them a well-described setting, don't laugh at their honest attempts to RP, and practice with it. Takes some work, but it'll come
As for interesting combat...
Here's the deal: The Monster Manuals are only half of what's out there. I can throw twenty or more generic CR 1 Orcs against my guys in HSX and they'd mop the floor with the orcs. What you need to do is shake things up a bit, and there's two words that tell you how to do that:
Character Levels.
Imagine a dragon that sneak attacks (some dragons can polymorph, hide in lava, etc; a sneak-attacking dragon isn't as far fetched as it might sound). Imagine the dragon's taken a feat that lets them swap some sneak attack damage for a feat that gives the victim a bleeding wound, or hobbles their run speed.
Or a unicorn Druid. Or, easily enough, a cadre of goblin barbarians (you laugh, but seriously...it can get very nasty very fast).
Tailor the encounter to stimulate the players. Yes there's a time when exterminating skeletons en masse is fun, and yes you can make the players sweat with a large-scale battle or a particularly powerful foe. But a few well-thought-out opponents are ALSO very cool. It gives you tactics above and beyond what the MM has for them.
Plus when you start thinking of the "encounter monsters" as being characters, it's easier to cook up situations with recurring villains. Monsters aren't stupid; if the battle is being hard fought and they aren't winning, they'll fight a retreating action and get the hell out of dodge. Then they might go lick their wounds and attack the heroes when things are going bad, or when the heroes are sleeping.
It's boring to say "I attack the X monster". It's much more interesting to have them think in tactical terms, with real consequences. Does the tank dare leave the wizard to advance on the troops? Without the tank, a rogue might sneak up on the wizard and ass-stab him, and then the tank wouldn't have the artillery cover fire he needs.
Feats, lad. Feats and character levels. The critters straight up from the Monster Manuals and so forth are good "nameless fodder". You want villains, you cook them up.
sigpic courtesy of This Guy, original modified by me
As mentioned previously, keep 'em guessing. I had a rogue who liked to steal everything in the old mansions they'd trek through on the way to a dungeon. I took something I read from Knights of the Dinner Table and had one of the tapestries trapped with a rolling boulder behind it if/when it was moved wrong. He quit stealing things, or at least checked them more carefully.
Which leads to another point: use many sources. Not just every book WoC puts out, but look in other games, read books, think about devilish things during your day. I've come up with my best ideas in the shower. Although the best thing is talking to as many other seasoned DMs as possible. Don't always follow their advice, it's your world and it's your group.
I had an old DM who used what he termed "cool points" in combat. He put us up against things that were too tough for groups much higher than we were, but with creative thinking or the burning of a "cool point," we just might survive. ...Most of the time. As the caster, I died. Often. But I'm used to that.
In summary, the best DMs are those who care enough to spend the time to devise new things, reward the ingenuity of the players, and vary their sources to counteract those who buy the books to get an edge. You don't need to create a whole new world to get around your over-eager players.
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I've come up with my best ideas in the shower.
I stopped reading right there.
=P
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So quoth Sentow, Maybe:
I stopped reading right there.
I actually do all my best thinking in the shower, too. I just can't get around that problem of water not liking paper or electronics, so notes are hard to take down.
It's not something people hear about.
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Sean had this to say about dark elf butts:
I actually do all my best thinking in the shower, too. I just can't get around that problem of water not liking paper or electronics, so notes are hard to take down.
No no no, I wasn't insulting him. I just saw, "think," and, "shower," in the same sentence, and that made me think of... well, nevermind. I'm gonna go wash my brain.
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Sean had this to say about pies:
I actually do all my best thinking in the shower, too. I just can't get around that problem of water not liking paper or electronics, so notes are hard to take down.
Put the paper on a clipboard, and put the clipboard inside one o' them bigass Ziploc bags. The bag should protect the paper from the water, while still allowing you to write on the paper through the opening of the bag.
Also, Deth, I try to never, ever make fun of roleplaying, the other players do not either. When we started, everyone was a bit apprehensive, and some still don't take it to the extreme. They'll have great characters outside of battle, but once in battle it's, "Attack, Attack, blah blah readied action..."
What kind of RP incentives do you guys use? Any?
quote:
This insanity brought to you by OtakuPenguin:
What kind of RP incentives do you guys use? Any?
Bonus EXP.
Also, if two characters want to do some aside talking, it can often be resolved via email. Just make sure the GM gets a copy of everything as it's said.
First off, you have to build a character right. Template, cookie-cutter characters aren't any good if you want staying power. There's only so many half-orc barbarians you can take before they all look alike. I suggest the "Hero Builder's Guidebook" for lots of detail on character creation.
In any case, before they open a book or touch a character sheet, get your players to really give some serious thought into their character's personality, what they do. See my comment in this thread to see what I did with HSX and why.
Once they've put that sort of thought into it, it becomes easier to imagine what sort of things their character would or would not do. So getting them to RP shouldn't result in needing a bonus.
In my campaign, I don't use monetary, XP, or material rewards for roleplaying. It quickly becomes a double edged sword. They'll go to extreme lengths to get that reward and if it's not good enough they bitch. I do something much more cruel to them. I shift the limelight.
People who RP are more interesting. Their characters are more interesting in the game world. The guy who just rolls dice has to live with the straight roll of the dice, while the guy who convincingly plays his character trying to pull a con might reduce that difficulty a little. But mostly I shift attention. People who roleplay get the most attention. They get the most "on camera" time. They get the anime soliloquys. When they do something really cool and succeed, they get the special "attack movie" descrip of the results. The goal isn't to make players think RP = Gold, or RP = way to con XP out of GM. The goal's to make them see why RP is cool. So you make it cool.
sigpic courtesy of This Guy, original modified by me
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Ja'Deth Issar Ka'bael Model 2000 was programmed to say:
Well...First off, you have to build a character right. Template, cookie-cutter characters aren't any good if you want staying power. There's only so many half-orc barbarians you can take before they all look alike. I suggest the "Hero Builder's Guidebook" for lots of detail on character creation.
In any case, before they open a book or touch a character sheet, get your players to really give some serious thought into their character's personality, what they do. See my comment in this thread to see what I did with HSX and why.
Once they've put that sort of thought into it, it becomes easier to imagine what sort of things their character would or would not do. So getting them to RP shouldn't result in needing a bonus.
In my campaign, I don't use monetary, XP, or material rewards for roleplaying. It quickly becomes a double edged sword. They'll go to extreme lengths to get that reward and if it's not good enough they bitch. I do something much more cruel to them. I shift the limelight.
People who RP are more interesting. Their characters are more interesting in the game world. The guy who just rolls dice has to live with the straight roll of the dice, while the guy who convincingly plays his character trying to pull a con might reduce that difficulty a little. But mostly I shift attention. People who roleplay get the most attention. They get the most "on camera" time. They get the anime soliloquys. When they do something really cool and succeed, they get the special "attack movie" descrip of the results. The goal isn't to make players think RP = Gold, or RP = way to con XP out of GM. The goal's to make them see why RP is cool. So you make it cool.
Holy shit, I do that exact same thing, I guess I just never realized it quite like that. It's just that the better roleplayers get into the world more, interact with my NPCs more, so they get more of the spotlight!
...Cool! 
I destroyed the universe (literally) when I tried to store my portable hole in my bag of holding... 
Then again, I've destroyed about four or five universes in various ways, and even rebooted a multi-verse. That was .. interesting.
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Check out the big brain on Delphi Aegis!
I destroyed the universe (literally) when I tried to store my portable hole in my bag of holding...
...all that does is open up a (surprisingly stable) Gate to the Astral Plane.
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Hey Densetsu, I betcha still living in your parent's cellar, downloadin' pictures of Sarah Michelle Gellar, and posting 'Me too!' like some brain-dead AOLer; I should do the world a favor and cap you like old yellah:
...all that does is open up a (surprisingly stable) Gate to the Astral Plane.
House rules.
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Everyone wondered WTF when Delphi Aegis wrote:
House rules.
Your DM sucks.
