Month: December 2011

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Editorial Player Resources

Greatest Hits 2011: Are You Willing to Provoke an Opportunity Attack?

While the Dungeon’s Master team enjoys some well-deserved vacation time, we’re breaking out the greatest hits and shining a spotlight on a few of our favourite articles from 2011. We’ve searched for hidden gems that our newer readers might have missed and our long-time readers will enjoy reading again. Enjoy a second look at these greatest hits from Dungeon’s Master.

The most important thing to remember when you provoke an opportunity attack is that it’s not a guaranteed hit. Your opponent still needs to make a successful attack roll against you. Yet most players think that an opportunity attack means automatic damage, and it’s this fear that keeps players stationary during combat. The misconception that they’ll take damage if they move or if they make a ranged attack when next to an enemy will sometimes lead players to use less than their best attacks.

Never forget that dice hate everyone equally, and not just your PC. You can’t assume that the dice will always give the DM a successful hit. In most cases the monster’s likelihood of scoring a hit is in the 50/50 ballpark. So the next time you have to decide if you should provoke an opportunity attack, think about what’s to be gained by doing so and then remember that the odds are probably in your favour.

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Player Resources

Greatest Hits 2011: Hurry Up and Wait – A Look a Delaying and Readying Actions

While the Dungeon’s Master team enjoys some well-deserved vacation time, we’re breaking out the greatest hits and shining a spotlight on a few of our favourite articles from 2011. We’ve searched for hidden gems that our newer readers might have missed and our long-time readers will enjoy reading again. Enjoy a second look at these greatest hits from Dungeon’s Master.

Since I wrote this article I’ve put my money where my mouth is on numerous occasions. In my home games I delay at some point in almost every encounter and readying an action is becoming a lot more commonplace too.

In a recent adventure our party was being attacked by flying creatures. The monsters would make flyby attacks, never landing close enough for us to engage them in melee. My Paladin had only one ranged attack, but it was range 5. The monsters with their incredible speed of 8 managed to remain more than 5 squares off the ground, staying safely out of my threat range. Round after round they swooped in, attacked, damaged us, and then flew to a safe distance from five of the six PCs.

Finally I decided to ready an action. After the next flying monster completed its move action I would use my only ranged attack against it. The result was better than expected.

Unaware of my plan, the monster continued his attack pattern. Move first, flyby attack second. Unfortunately for the monster my readied action went off after its move but before the flyby attack. I landed a solid hit. As soon as the rest of the party saw my success they too began readying actions. The monsters only lasted a couple more rounds.

After that encounter things really changed at my gaming table. Now we have PCs readying actins all the time. Sometimes they don’t get to act for a round or two, but we’ve become a lot more effective and the combat has actually become faster. So the next time your fighting a bunch of monsters take a second to think tactically and see if readying an action will give you an advantage you might not normally anticipate.

Remember that just because you can attack on your turn doesn’t mean that you have to attack on your turn. There are often better options, but it’s up to you to figure out what they are.

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D&D Encounters

D&D Encounters: Beyond the Crystal Cave (Week 6)

During last week’s encounter the PCs had to decide if they were going to seek aid from Ragnar or Uma. Both groups I played with ended up helping Uma’s followers and lured the bears into Ragnar’s camp. This week the PCs were rewarded for their actions. If they helped Ragnar’s people wrangle the unicorns then they met with Ragnar; if they baited the bears they met with Uma. Both of my groups met with Uma.

Uma welcomed the PCs into her grove. She gave the heroes a chance to tell their tale, explain who they were, why they were here and how she could be of service. After the PCs said their piece Uma answered their questions and provided them with additional details of what was happening on Porpherio’s Island.

Uma explained that the Hag Soryth is an uninvited guest who came to the island in an attempt to take control if it from Porpherio. When her attempt to do so failed she snatched Juliana and returned to the Palace of Spires, a tiny plane connected to the island through a magical maze. Soryth will likely try the ritual again when she gets a hold of Orlando.

Orlando was last seen following a Nymph into the forest. Uma asked the PCs to find the Nymph and bring Orlando back to the Dryad’s grove. Uma believes that she can undo the foul magic that the Hag caused when the ritual was disrupted. However, both Ragnar and Soryth also seek Orlando so the heroes must hurry.

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Player Resources

Greatest Hits 2011: Character Catchphrases

While the Dungeon’s Master team enjoys some well-deserved vacation time, we’re breaking out the greatest hits and shining a spotlight on a few of our favourite articles from 2011. We’ve searched for hidden gems that our newer readers might have missed and our long-time readers will enjoy reading again. Enjoy a second look at these greatest hits from Dungeon’s Master.

A catchphrase can certainly add personality to an otherwise dull character. But it can work in reverse as well. If your catchphrase is weak or silly you can make an interesting character seem dull in a hurry.

I’ve heard my share of lame catchphrase at the gaming table. Some of the worst catchphrases I’ve ever heard are nothing more than really bad puns. I don’t think a con goes by where I don’t hear “It’s hammer time!” from the guy playing a Dwarf with a hammer, “Let me axe you a question,” from a PC with a axe, or “I’m giving him the shaft,” from an archer. If you’re going to go to the trouble of actually creating and using a catchphrase please try to be imaginative. I realize that puns or wordplay can get a quick chuckle from the table, but the ones like I’ve described here aren’t funny or original. They’re just lame.

There’s a reason that some of the coolest characters in D&D and fantasy fictions are the strong silent type: saying the wrong thing is often worse than saying nothing at all. So when you decide that your character is going to use a catchphrase, just make sure to it’s something interesting. It can be funny, especially if it’s derived from previous failure or an unexpected success, but don’t bore the table with nothing more than a bad pun. Now you know. “And knowing is half the battle!”

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DM Resources

Greatest Hits 2011: Two-Hit Minions

While the Dungeon’s Master team enjoys some well-deserved vacation time, we’re breaking out the greatest hits and shining a spotlight on a few of our favourite articles from 2011. We’ve searched for hidden gems that our newer readers might have missed and our long-time readers will enjoy reading again. Enjoy a second look at these greatest hits from Dungeon’s Master.

Of all the articles I wrote in 2011, the article on two-hit minions is one of the ones I’m most proud of. Most of our articles are tips, tricks and advice for how to improve your game or make it more fun; rarely do we try and introduce any new mechanics. The two-hit minion was an exception. It was a mechanic that Sterling first suggested almost two years earlier, but when we actually started using the two-hit minions regularly this article was born and the feedback was very positive.

It took a few sessions of play testing before I believe I found the right balance for running two-hit minions, and each time we tweaked the mechanic the players confirmed that it was getting better. I’ve been using two-hit minions in my games, especially D&D Encounters, for about six months now and they always make the game more interesting. The players love the rush that comes from mowing down a bunch of minions, but they really love that some of those minions have the strength to take a hit and get right back up.

I’ve also learned that the key to two-hit minions it not to overuse them. This is good advice for minions in general, but is even better advice when it comes to the two-hit variation. By switching it up and mixing regular minions in with two-hit minions, players stop making broad assumptions about monsters until they actually have a chance to engage them. They no longer assume that six identical minis are going to be minions that will fall with one hit. Now they take into consideration the possibility that some or all of them might survive a blast from the controller so they need to be ready for that eventuality.

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DM Resources Player Resources

Greatest Hits 2011: Make Magical Item Identification Harder

While the Dungeon’s Master team enjoys some well-deserved vacation time, we’re breaking out the greatest hits and shining a spotlight on a few of our favourite articles from 2011. We’ve searched for hidden gems that our newer readers might have missed and our long-time readers will enjoy reading again. Enjoy a second look at these greatest hits from Dungeon’s Master.

We all like getting stuff, whether it’s in real life or in game. If it’s new, it’s exciting. In the case of magical items they have the added benefit of being powerful; likely more powerful than the items you currently possess. But being able to discover everything about an item over the course of a short rest, a mere 5 minutes in game, is a lot like receiving a gift without wrapping paper. Where’s the surprise? Where’s the suspense? And more importantly where’s the joy that comes from finally discovering what’s actually beneath that disguised exterior?

By making magical identification harder you take something that was once a thrilling part of the game, and add the excitement back into getting something new. When you don’t know what the magic sword actually does (beyond providing a plus or two) it’s like looking at all the wrapped presents underneath a Christmas tree with your name on them. You know that eventually you’ll get to open those presents, but until then there’s the anticipation of what they might be? Is that box a new video game or a pair of dress socks? Does that small packable contain a gift card to your favourite store or is it a last minute bauble from a discount store?

By making magical identification harder you bring back anticipation. You make the PCs and the players live with the suspense of not knowing what that item will be. And when they finally do discover the item’s full potential it’s just like being a kid on Christmas morning and finally getting to open all those presents that you could see but not open in the day days and weeks leading up to Christmas.

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Editorial

Merry Christmas

The Dungeon’s Master team wishes all of our readers a safe and happy holiday season.

We’re coming up on three years since we launched Dungeon’s Master and we’re still going strong. Thank you to all of our readers and to everyone who’s helped make Dungeon’s Master a success.

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Categories
Class Discussions Player Resources

Greatest Hits 2011: Band of Brothers: Adventuring Parties of the Same Race

While the Dungeon’s Master team enjoys some well-deserved vacation time, we’re breaking out the greatest hits and shining a spotlight on a few of our favourite articles from 2011. We’ve searched for hidden gems that our newer readers might have missed and our long-time readers will enjoy reading again. Enjoy a second look at these greatest hits from Dungeon’s Master.

Excluding monsters, there are 36 playable races in 4e D&D (so far). Each race brings something unique to the character creation equation. Although a character of any race can become any class, there are obviously some that are more suited than others based on racial bonuses. But even with the choices narrowed down, it’s still unusual to have any two PCs in a party be the same race or even the same class. That’s just the way D&D works. And I for one have absolutely no issues with it.

The challenge with this kind of multiculturalism is coming up with a plausible reason that explains how and why these characters ever came together in the first place. It’s easy to accept the foundations of the fantasy setting in the context of the game, but beyond the high level elements, players still expect a certain level of realism and want things to make sense even in a wondrous setting. Yet time after time we just accept (albeit begrudgingly) that this band of misfits we call a party found common purpose and have become fast friends.

One of the best ways to overcome the “why are we in the same adventuring party?” problem is to find some commonality. Making everyone play the same race is probably the easiest way to accomplish this. As much as I hate to restrict anyone’s options during character creation, a party of the same race does present some immediate benefits, the first and most obvious of which is finding motive to be together.

When the party is made up entirely of just one race there are plenty of ways to create a shared background between some of all of the characters. It also gives the players a chance to look at the racial powers and feats and see if there are ways to try something that they might not be able to if there weren’t other members of the same race in their party.

When Lair Assault offered Glory for a party of the same race that completed the adventure I expected to see a lot of same-race parties. Of the 15+ games I watched or played in, I never saw a single party where the PCs were all the same race. I saw a few parties with four Dwarves or four Genasi, but never the full five. I guess that no matter how appealing you make it, unless the DM puts his foot down, people will exercise their freedom of choice and make the character they want, race be damned. Oh well, their loss.

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Editorial

Greatest Hits 2011: The Importance of Trust and Honesty in D&D

While the Dungeon’s Master team enjoys some well-deserved vacation time, we’re breaking out the greatest hits and shining a spotlight on a few of our favourite articles from 2011. We’ve searched for hidden gems that our newer readers might have missed and our long-time readers will enjoy reading again. Enjoy a second look at these greatest hits from Dungeon’s Master.

Without honesty there is chaos. I used this as a heading in the original article and the more I think about that line the more I believe that it’s the absolute truth.

When you play D&D at home it’s usually with a group of very close-knit buddies. This dynamic usually means that there are no problems or issues regarding trust and honesty. There are no strangers at this gaming table and it’s unlikely you’d want to cheat your friends. But when it comes to public play, some gamers (a few bad apples, as it were) will try to take advantage of the situation for their own personal gain, possibly at the expense of playing honestly.

I want to be clear that the overwhelming majority of my public-play experiences have been very positive. I’ve only ever had a couple of instances where players were caught, or even suspected of, cheating or intentionally being dishonest. However, I think that in some public-play situations, especially when there are newer players at the table, the desire to push the boundaries of trust are more prevalent.

During some D&D Encounters sessions players will try to gain an advantage by intentionally bending or breaking the rules. Where this is most problematic is among newer players that don’t have character builder and make PCs the old fashioned way. The carelessness with which some players throw together a character infuriates me. They add modifiers across the board because they don’t know or don’t understand when they apply or not. They’ll take more powers than they’re supposed to or use encounter or daily powers even after they’re expended. Even after I’ve politely given them the benefit of the doubt, explained that they’ve made an error somewhere and that they should correct it before the next game, they still use the flawed sheets.

I’ve finally had to crack down on bad character creation. I implemented a new rule that if you make your character without character builder you have to leave it with me between sessions so I can review it. In most cases I just recreate the PC in character builder to validate the numbers are right. At first I found lots of problems on every character sheet, but now that the group knows I’m checking they’ve become more diligent about accuracy.

What bothers me most is that some players (again, a very select few) didn’t feel that honesty was required until they realized they were less likely to get away with it. You always want to believe that people will do the right thing. In a gaming situation, especially with new players, you hope that they’re honest and will follow the rules of the game and of the unwritten social contract. All it takes is one or two bad instances to sully everyone’s view of D&D. So let’s all do our part to play honestly and encourage fair play in our games moving forward; because without honesty there is chaos.

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D&D Encounters

D&D Encounters: Beyond the Crystal Cave (Week 5)

It was only yesterday that this adventuring party met for the first time in Count Varis’s palace. Since then they fought and bled together. They met with Lady Tamora, ruler of Crystalrook, and they met with Lord Carric, ruler of the Sildane Forest. They followed the trail of the two young lovers, Juliana and Orlando, and crossed into the Feywild to find them. They battled an Echo Spirit, an Ochre Jelly, Mud Men, and a Hag along the way. It was a very eventful day that ended with a much needed and well earned rest. But now the party is awake and new challenges await them Beyond the Crystal Cave.

This week I was only able to play at one location. The other group ran into some scheduling conflicts and we’ll likely need a few make up sessions during the holidays to get back on track. At the FLGS where I did play I was the only DM able to make it out this week. I’ve run large groups before but I didn’t want to do so again this week. So when I arrived at my FLGS I asked one of the players if he’d be willing to go behind the screen this week.

Although he’d never run a game before I know he was eager to try. I also knew that every week he lugged every D&D book he owned, including the red box, to and from the game. He reluctantly agreed. We ended up with two DMs and eight players, so four per table. I took the younger players, leaving the veterans to play with the new DM. In the end things worked out pretty well for both tables.

The party at my table consisted of the following PCs: a Hamadryad Ranger (Scout), a Tiefling Paladin (Caviler), a Satyr Bard (Master Skald) [Fey Beast Tamer] and Belgos the Drow Ranger (Hunter). After last week’s massacre one of the more experienced players decided to swap out a striker for a leader. Good call.

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