RSS
email
3

Know Thy Enemy: The Narrative C*ck Block

Recently, I was reading on the wizards community forums and a question got posed that got me thinking: "How do you make sense of knocking prone a Gelatinous Cube?"

I've heard this argument before, mostly as a way of claiming that 4E has issues with its mechanics because "logically" a limbless, shapeless creature would not be able to be "knocked prone." In the same vein I have also heard (at my own tables no less) that a mindless undead creature should "logically" be immune to all fear effects, or that a halfling rogue shouldn't "logically" be able to daze a giant.

All of these issues stem from the same enemy - The Narrative C*ck Block. Basically, this enemy will nerf your character choices because in our world (AKA, "IRL", Earth, Real Life) such things seem very close to plausable, but still seem impossible. Or on the flip side, this enemy can rear his ugly head because some author somewhere said that it shouldn't work. But really, this issue stems mostly from certain game elements having misleading names, or those names being taken too literally. But to me, the biggest problem with this enemy is that it sits really close to a game-play virtue: verisimilitude.

It is sometimes hard to tell when verisimilitude is taken too far and turns into a Narrative C*ck Block. But basically, when a player (or DM) begins making up narrative reasons for a character's (or monster's) mechanical abilities to not function as expected - you've taken verisimilitude too far.

In past editions, and in fact in many other systems, the designers attempt to give individual mechanical definitions to all the possible things that could happen in a situation. This system can lead to either bloated rule sets or to the players having to create new rules for each situation. Neither, I'd like to point out, is an "incorrect" way to play and can carry their own rewarding play experiences.

However, 4E took a different route. Instead of attempting to model reality with slightly different rules for each scenario, the designers took a more abstract route. They created a set of "conditions", or generic negative mechanical packages, that could be applied to a creature. These conditions were given names that would correspond to a narrative situation in which they would mostly likely apply to. In this way, a single condition could be applied to a wide variety of situations in which a similar set of mechanical penalties could be utilized. Plus, its more evocative to say prone, rather then "Condition Set 14."

So for the condition of "prone" you've got to look at it as a condition that imposes a -2 penalty to attack rolls; grants adjacent enemies combat advantage, and imposes a -2 penalty on ranged attacks made against the target, instead of "the creature is laying on the ground."

It is a bit of a shift. But when looked at in this light, it makes sense that a power would be able to apply a -2 penalty to a Gelatinous Cube, allowing adjacent allies to gain combat advantage against it, and impose a -2 penalty to all ranged attacks against it. This is called, in game terms, making it "prone" for ease of use. And this can be said of any condition, or other game element.

So, to make sure you don't push your games verisimilitude into Narrative C*ck blocker-y - don't get hung up on the name of a game element, look at what that game element does and dust off your imagination! You can come up with a narrative way to explain all those mechanical penalties!

Sure, you really can't make a limbless, amorphous blob fall flat on its face. But the same attack that may do that to a humanoid creature, when employed against an ooze, might just make the creature jiggle violently, slowing its movement and making it easier to hit up close, and harder to hit from far way, until it takes a move action to stop the jiggling of course!

The important thing to remember is that you shouldn't penalize your players (or yourself) for taking a mechanical element, because it doesn't immediately "make sense" to you how it could "logically" work. Or if you are going to, make sure to tell your players in advance - so they can weigh that mechanical option against other, less situational options.
Read more
0

DDI Review: Silverlight Character Builder

In case you haven't been keeping up with the latest news from WotC. Here's the low down:

The much beloved Character Builder software is going to be moving to an online only subscription based service run in Silverlight.

There is all kinds of controversy regarding this move, and below you can read my take on the whole thing.

I think the online only model has both pros and cons, and whether it effects you or not depends on how you use the program. If you use the program at the table, as an interactive character sheet then this change will limit your ability to play in your preferred way while in the mountains or in someones basement. Granted, you can still print those characters to PDF, and use them from your laptop - but that isnt exactly the same. For me it makes absolutely no difference, aside from not being able to utilize iplay4e with essentials material. My primary use of the character builder has been to create characters and then print them (or use iplay4e) I dont just "dabble" in character creation - because my out-of-game game time is spent developing adventures and scenarios for my characters to hack their way through :).

And the benefits to an online only based model are that your character is backed up on their servers, so when a cat drops water on your laptop you dont loose all your characters. Also, for those of us that dont have laptops it means that you can access your characters from any internet enabled computer. Which a quick Google search shows is greater then 70% of all US households.

Also, for those people that cannot install the program for some reason, like owning a Mac, being on a computer that does not belong to them (ie work computer) or cannot figure out how to install .NET, an online only solution gives them easy access to the builder without a need to install.

Plus, from a technical standpoint users will never have to update their builder again (a process that was a nightmare for some) and the development team wont have to package update modules which means they can spend that extra time developing NEW functionality instead of just updating content. A single database is a whole world easier to update than pushing content patches.

Then there's the elephant in the room - piracy. An online based system will ultimately cut piracy. And while people may still be able to hack the system and run their own databases and such, it becomes much easier to send S&D letters to a person running an illegal server than to try and go at the torrent sites. Legal battles with torrent sites always become nightmareish, and the people running them know it. Will more people pony up the money for a product they previously stole? Perhaps. But from Wizards stand point, those people were not making them any income, and if even one person begins paying for it because its no longer easy to find and use then they win. And when Wizards wins (ie makes more money) we win because that means Hasbro will spend more on development of a flourishing franchise.

In all, I'm not sure its a step backwards nor a step forwards. I really feel like if they can deliver on the export feature within 1-2 months (we'll give them the benefit of that extra month with the holidays coming up) then this update is really more a shift the the side. 100% better for some, and a need to shift game play for others.

Game breaker? I dont think so. I can not foresee a situation that this would ever get me to stop playing the game system I so enjoy. Unless the whole reason you started playing D&D was to utilize their character creation tools.
Read more
0

Rule Zero: Morale System

I was sent an article the other day from Dice of Doom that attempted to tackle one of 4th editions biggest downfall, "The Grind." I've spoken at length about how I feel the grind might be alleviated, through better encounter design or through spacing out powers and such, but the folks over at The Dice of Doom blog have come up with a system that is at once effective, both mechanically and narrativly, and simple to implement.

I am speaking about their Morale System.

I was skeptical at first - "A morale system for D&D?" but then I remembered that a morale system has been in place in most editions of the game from the beginning, its just that no one ever used them because they were a pain in the butt. So I gave it a quick read through (as I suggest you do as well) and I thought to myself "Wow, that sounds like it could be really, really fun!" But I did have one or two quibbles with the way it was worded so I am going to basically re-write it here, in my own terms with a few extra rules thrown in to flavor.

I mean think about it, during the high action combats that take place in your game, the miniatures and the dice rolling are used to determine the outcome of a grand battle taking place in a fantasy world. This imagined battlefield is ever changing and extreamly dangerous, every 4-6 seconds swords are clashing together in showers of sparks, and spells are completed that send their deadly energy burning through the air. In this environment it is important to memeber that, while the Player Characters are fearless heroes who throw caution to the wind, most of their adversaries are living, breathing (and often times) sentient beings, who have their own best interests at heart. So when the chips are down, or the situation seems dire, these enemies may break ranks and flee! That is what the Morale System is for.

I haven't been able to playtest this system yet, but I hope to in the near future.

Click through to the full article to read the Moral Systems I've come up with!

Read more
1

Editorial: Things I enjoy from other systems

So I have been playing a lot of D&D 4e lately. And I mean A LOT.


1 monthly game,
1 weekly game,
2 bi-weekly games,
and a D&D Game day this weekend...

That's enough to burn anyone out, especially since I run all but one of those games! And when I'm feeling a bit burnt out on D&D it becomes a bit tough for me to even look at the cover of one of my rulebooks, let alone actually put any thought into the story lines or characters that are in those games.


But that leaves me with nothing to occupy my brain, because usually D&D is like the mortar that holds the bricks of my thoughts together, it takes up all my extra computing power as it were, and so if suddenly I can't bring myself to think on it, all the other thoughts in my head become kinda disjointed and my world takes on a sorta odd bent.

Click on the title of this post to read how I cope.

Read more
0

Know They Enemy: Game Mode

This enemy is one of my most hated enemies – and I’ve mentioned it once or twice before. Game mode is defined as the state of mind that most players enter into, as soon as a battle map is drawn, or dice begin to roll. They zero in on the game aspects of D&D and usually forget about roleplaying or the world that their characters live in.

More on this insidious multi-headed demon after the jump!

Read more
1

Know Thy Enemy: The Grind

The Grind, The Slog, Sammich combat - its been called many things, but they all refer to the very same enemy. Fourth edition brought us many new ways to play the game, and it's combat system was one of the biggest changes. But along with those changes came an unwanted side effect. The Grind happens at the end of combat, after all the players have used their encounters and are either out of dailies or sitting on them for the next encounter, and the Artillery have been delt with, the enemy controller is dead, and the PC's Striker/Defender is at-will mopping up the hard to hit, low damage output Soldier monsters. The end of the encounter is a hand, the PC's have won - but there are still over two hundred hp to finish up with on the board. This state of affairs is what I will refer to as "The Grind."

After the jump we will identify the Enemey and then learn some Combat skills to fight it!

Read more
0

Custom Creatures: Priest of the Dark Eclipse

The Priest of the Dark Eclipse is a modified version of the Initiate of the Dark Eclipse, which was printed in the RPGA adventure "The Black Knight of Arabel", with the Avenger class template applied.

Stats and explanation after the jump.

Read more
0

DDI Reviews: The Ruthless Reach Barbarians

Article: Class Acts: The Ruthless Reach Barbarians

Ruthless reach barbarians are a strange idea, strap a long weapon on a damage dealing machine and let it loose, but not one that I am not unfamiliar with actually.

More after the jump.

Read more
0

Bust out the map: Terrain Experiments


So recently my party, "The Clearwater Knights" found themselves able to finish a retelling of an encounter with "and then we killed her with a boat!" And I was just as flabergasted when it happened as they were.

More after the jump.

Read more
0

Rule Zero: Combat Ritualist


I've always thought that the ritual system needed some tweaking - and I'm not sure what I would do to make rituals more acceptable in non-combat situations, but we here at Forced Movement have come up with a way to use Rituals in combat. Based on the Alchemy system, these new items - called Combat Rituals - key off of a specific ritual, and require the caster to have the Combat Ritualist feat.

Combat Ritualist
Prerequisites: Ritual Caster
You can create and use Combat Rituals.

Combat Rituals
Your character has learned the art of tweaking a ritual so that it can be cast in the heat of battle. A combat ritual is a new type of magic item that only a character with the Combat Ritualist feat and the proper ritual memorized may create and use.

Creating a Combat Ritual:
Creating a Combat Ritual takes half the amount of time it would normally take to cast the full ritual, during which the character spends time scribeing the nessesary components onto a specially prepared scroll. The cost of these special scrolls and component is given on each Combat Ritual, and can usually be found for sale at most places that sell ritual components.

Sample Combat Rituals:
Immediate Repose:
You use a small portion of the healing ritual Gentle Repose to staunch a friend's bleeding.
Level 1
Price: 20gp
Required Ritual: Gentle Repose

Power (Consumable): Minor action. You succeed on the next Heal check made to stabilize a dying ally.

Protective Circle:
You intone the final words of the Magic Circle ritual that you began earlier, with slight variations and a circle of blue-white ethreal runes shoot out around you.
Level 5
Price: 50 gp
Required Ritual: Magic Circle

Power(Consumable): Standard Action. This power creates a zone in a close burst 2 that acts as difficult terrain to any creature of a type, chosen when this power is used. This zone lasts until the end of the encounter or for 5 minutes.

Arcane Reserves
Your eyes glow softly as you refocus some of your energy to ease your minor cuts and bruises.
Level 1
Price 20gp
Required Ritual: Simbul's Conversion (FRPG)

Power (Consumable): Move action. Gain 1d8+half your healing surge value in temp hp. While you have these temp hp you take a -2 to all the damage you deal.


Deadly Pyrotechnics
You have learned how to turn these otherwise harmless child's playthings into deadly weapons.
Level 2
Price 25gp
Required Ritual: Pyrotechnics

Power (Consumable): Standard action. Ranged 10; +5 vs. Reflex; on a hit the target takes 1d10+3 damage and ongoing 2 fire damage (save ends).

Fatefull Attack
The power of fate guides your hand but cares nothing for the risks involved.
Level 4
Price 35gp
Required Ritual: Hand of Fate (PHB)

Power (Consumable): Minor Action. +4 on your next attack roll and a -2 to all defenses until the end of your next turn.

Illusionary Ally
Using the magic stored within this ritual you create the illusion of having more friends then you have.
Level 12
Price 500gp
Required Ritual: Hallucinatory Creature

Power (Consumable): Standard Action. Close Burst 2; targets all enemies in burst; + 15 vs Will; On a hit the target grants combat advantage until the beginning of the target's next turn.

Instant Bonds
You cast your hand out with the final incantations of this ritual, and spectral chains burst forth wrapping themselves around the target.
Level 10
Price 300gp
Required Ritual: Tenser's Binding (DR. 366)

Power(Consumable): Standard Action. Ranged 5; +13 vs Ref; On a hit the target is restrained (save ends) and cannot teleport (save ends)

True Teleportation
Using this ritual's power your attack is everywhere at once.
Level 28
Price 85,000gp
Required Ritual: Linked Portal

Power(Consumable): Move Action. Until the end of your current turn you may determine targeting for a single power from any square on the battlefield, regardless of line of sight or effect. For powers the rely on enemies being adjacent to you or your powers effect, you must choose a single square. At the end of your turn you may teleport yourself or any one ally to any unoccupied square.
Read more
0

January 2010 Content Calendar

After a quick look at the content calendar this month, it looks like it's promising to be a very "Class Acts:" heavy month, with six classes getting some more love. I am really glad to see the Artificer finally getting some attention, as one of the "non-core" classes it tends to get left out of a lot of the articles and such.

I dont have time to give my thoughts on every entry on the calander (I'll do that as the articles come out) but real quick I saw a few that interested me instantly:

On the 19th we get a full look at the hybrid rules that will be presented in the PH3. I am currently playing a hybrid and there are some definite things that need to change - I have no idea what and  right now they work mechanically okay, but instead of feeling like I am making a new "Avenger | Swordmage" class I really feel like I am just a cruddy Avenger and a cruddy Swordmage. Now the combinations you can come up with are interesting and varied and all but the features still just seem to distant from each other...

So of course on the 22nd they are giving us some more Artificer-y goodness. I hope to see a more melee focused set of powers, or perhaps a full on alchemist build, you know like an at will that is quickly mixing the correct components and then throwing the vial to see it either explode or freeze the enemy or become a sticky goop. We shall see, but most likely it's gonna be some new daily powers and a new familiar or something like that - just to spite me. :)

The 22nd must be my birthday - well okay I mean to say Jan 22nd because the 22nd is my birthday just in a different month... Anyway, on that day WotC is hitting us with a Winning Races: Humans. I was actually just ranting to my group the other day about this, how there seems to be a lack of Human love going on around R&D at Wizards. Like how in 3.5e they where releasing the "Races of..." books and when it finally came around to "Races of Destiny" the human book, most of the book was about the Illuminati or whatever they where.

And finally on the 25th, there is an article called "The Art of Binding." I saw that title and nearly exploded with joy. In 3.5e I never did get to play my all time favorite class, the Binder, nor did any of my players ever actually play one. My big baddy at the end of my campaign was a Binder, but that is a far cry from actually playing one. Then 4th ed. hit right after it was released and I never looked back (yet). I know it's probably not what I think it is, its not the resurgence of the Binder class, obviously they already gave the distinction to the Warlock with his Visage pact and such. But I was saddend by that move - it makes sense totally and completely - but one of the things I loved about the Binder was the act of Binding the Visage and then the resulting quarks that came over your character as a result. Also I have a bit of a thing against playing a Striker (even though I think when I have played instead of DM I usually get that role) and the Binder of old was so versatile... Oh well, either way the title has peaked my interest.

And the other articles look great too! Cant wait, to see all this month holds!
Read more