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[wierd]

You know, considering the reputation bards get in DnD, I have given some thought to the silliness that might transpire if somebody made a campaign set in the Oglaf universe.

[Grim Portent]

That's so dumb - it must happen. The fear stuff is very cool, but hard to exploit.

Unfortunately, the AoE fear from their Oath gets a save every turn, and from Dragon Fear gives a save if damaged, so...every turn if in the aura. Still, it's a wasted turn for several enemies.

That's where Menacing feat comes in when it's allowed. Double proficiency bonus to Intimidation checks and you can swap out 1 attack per turn for a Cha(Intimidate) check opposed by the targets Wis(Insight). If they fail they're frightened for one round, if they pass they're immune for an hour.

On a normal PC it's just a form of really good cc, on a Conquest Paladin it turns you into a monument of fear who can kill with their will alone.

Remember, Logistics and Dragons is best when everyone (DM possibly as well, YMMV) is on-board before the game. Also, if you're playing a math-based wizard, or huckster bard, or illusionist who makes things appear much more valuable than they appear.

I was originally leaning towards a fighter myself. Halberd, heavy armour, be one of the 30 soldiers as a mercenary captain looking for work with his lads, get stuck in as a pikewall with the front line hirelings. Good Charisma and Inspiring Leader and so on to be the stressed but outwardly optimistic boss just looking to keep the lads alive and in the green for another month at a time.

'Well that job with the troll will handle payroll for two weeks, but Aedric and Edmund won't be fighting fit for three. Need to find paying work for a reduced company fast or things could get desperate. Better send some lads to check for bounties, hit up the townsfolk and I'll have to slog up to whoever's in charge that will deign to speak with me and ask about stuff that might earn us some money.'

That sort of thing.

[Mesa]

Finally bit the bullet and decided to run a Starfinder campaign for my group. (Mostly thanks to the recent release of the Character Operations Manual.)
I pitched it as "XCOM meets Doom meets Destiny" - devils are invading the solar system, having overtaken one of the worlds for themselves as a beachhead, and the remaining worlds have founded a sort of Multiplanetary Anti-Devil XCOM, called Project PALADIN, to drive them back and the party are a new team of recruits.

And it sure is a colorful bunch:
- an uplifted bear technomancer
- a dragonkin soldier (with a barbarian-esque fighting style)
- a human envoy
- a dessamar (humanoid butterfly alien) mystic

They still need to pick which world they want to initially operate within (it's a tailor-made solar system, though still pretty kitchen-sinky in terms of the types of locales available - it all used to be part of one interplanetary empire that has since collapsed, so it's got that "classic D&D setting" vibe to it there, with lots of ruins and stuff to explore, particularly those of the "old XCOM" from that era).
I was initially worried since Starfinder's devil/demon selection is at best anemic, but then I found out how monster creation works, so now I'm excited to stat out some cool Doom-esque cybernetically-enhanced baddies.
There won't be like, the entire XCOM strategy/management layer, because that sounds like way too much for what seems to be the first time I actually feel confident in my ability to run a campaign for more than a few sessions - I have a strong pitch that's easy to write individual missions/adventures for, and at least a roughly idea of how it'll go (eventually they'll join one of the more specialized divisions of PALADIN and take on higher-responsibility missions, all while uncovering the devils' plan to eventually reactivate an old warp gate, establishing a connection to Hell and subjugating the entire system...So that'll be fun.) Also there might be demons and cults and corrupt nobles along the way too.

And if they end up losing, I can pull of XCOM 2! How convenient!

[Iduno]

Well, you also got to bother with the local lords or whatever knowing there's some random asshole wandering around with an army of goblins and other assorted nasties.  Probably up to no good with that.

Better send a party of adventurers to go deal with that.

"Dear Lord X, please schedule more loot deliveries. Signed, the adventurers with an army wandering around your lands looting stuff."

[Kagus]

So, couple slightly diffuse questions here...

I've fiddled with the idea of a "mundane" healer, specifically a Thief archetype Rogue with a pack full of healer's kits and the Healer feat. Basic theory being a combat medic pressed into service by an underground organization, they have some disagreements, the medic becomes a fugitive yadda yadda medicine and crime. Not hugely original, but serves the purpose.

The issue here, of course, is that Rogues don't have much use for Wisdom and healer's kits specifically don't use the Medicine skill... But it seems a bit strange for a career medic not have a semi-decent score in that skill. So, what... Invest in a stat and skill that you'll rarely if ever use just for the sake of backing up the fluff, or leave it dumped and try to argue why your doctor can't actually doctor very doctorly?


Second question relates to a concept for a butler/bodyguard character, using a monk to fit the unarmed/unarmored/still competent bill. I'm not finding many specific rules on the topic, so I figured I'd ask how likely y'all think it is that a DM could be convinced to let you use a reaction to jump between your master and a projectile attack fired at them? Presumably it'd ask a bit too much to be able to use the monk's Deflect Missiles on top of that, since that specifically requires a reaction, but at least some form of actually protecting your charge would be nice.

[Persus13]

Rogues have a ton of use for Wisdom because their whole shtick is getting the drop on people and that's more difficult with low Wisdom. If you want to have profiency in Medicine, you certainly can, but going to class and learning how to use a Healer's Kit, and actually being able to diagnose injuries are completely separate things in my book.

For a bodyguard, Mark of Sentinel Human has a reaction ability that's very similar to what you're looking for.

[IcyTea31]

Played an xmas special session of 5e today. Highlights:

• My summoned reindeer (statted as a pony) got the last hit on high-level enemies multiple times. Despite being primarily a joke and having only 11 hit points, it survived the session.
• Death knight sleigh pulled by undead flying reindeer; our sorcerer's lightning bolt spell killed all of them on one side, causing the sleigh to spiral and crash...with our ranger on it.
• Beholder ambushed one half of a split party. Unfortunately for it, that half was our nuker and both of our strikers; it died in 2 rounds.
• Our cleric/gourmet chef decided that the beholder would make a great head cheese and made it into a holiday feast.
• For the next session, we decided to get on a boat. Yes, that is a terrible idea, especially given how high a CR our party has proved itself capable of facing...

[GiglameshDespair]

Second question relates to a concept for a butler/bodyguard character, using a monk to fit the unarmed/unarmored/still competent bill. I'm not finding many specific rules on the topic, so I figured I'd ask how likely y'all think it is that a DM could be convinced to let you use a reaction to jump between your master and a projectile attack fired at them? Presumably it'd ask a bit too much to be able to use the monk's Deflect Missiles on top of that, since that specifically requires a reaction, but at least some form of actually protecting your charge would be nice.

You could also dip fighter for the Protection fighting style, which lets you impose disadvantage on an attack on something within 5ft of you as a reaction.

[Kagus]

You could also dip fighter for the Protection fighting style, which lets you impose disadvantage on an attack on something within 5ft of you as a reaction.

*requires the use of a shield

Yeah, I was looking at that too, but monks and shields don't get along very well. I considered the possibility of just doing a dex fighter with some sort of custom reinforced dress garment or whatever serving as light armor, and phrasing a serving platter as a shield, but... Eh.

[Imic]

I’m hosting a D&D session on friday, and while most of the Dungeon they will be entering is finished, I still have one problem: puzzles.

The gimmick of the Dungeon is that it’s an ancient abandoned Magitech Dragoborn Laboratory built in a massive stalegtite over a seemingly bottomless saltwater lake, all of which is at the lowest level of the Underdark. Things came out of a pit, the Draginborn dissaproved, so first they threw in rocks, and more things came out, then they threw in magma, and more things came out, then they started emptying desert’s worth of sand into the pit and still stuff came out, so they dug a massive pipe to the ocean and filled it with saltwaypter. On the one hand, it definitely isn’t bottomless if tpit could be filled with saltwater, on the other hand, no-one ever went down to find out. Things still came out, but lesser things, at least comparatively, so they built 5 laboratories around the Lake to study it. They were connected to the rest of the underground Kingdom via magitech trams. In the end, they despcided to pack up and leave for reasons unknown.
(Tl;dr: lab built over lake of evil gribbles is abandoned because of reasons)

None of that really matters, though. What matters is that the doors have tow levels of securitym a key, and a puzzle. The key is so that only a few People can get in. The puzzles are so as if the keys are stolen, they still can’t get in. The puzzles can’t involve massive amounts of magic, and they need to be obtuse, with no available hints. Instead, the Players will be given a few notes belonging to a dead Scientist which essentially amount to password hints. The idea is that first they figure out what the hint means, then they figure out how it relates to the five chains, a wheel and an engraving of a frog with a beard that’s on the door. This is all really important for plot reasons, but so far not a single place I have gone looking for ideas in has given me more than one or twosolid ideas. I’m getting desperate, and my own mind is turning up blanks, and I’ve lost my old Professor Layton games at some point over the years. Pls help.

[Iduno]

I’m hosting a D&D session on friday, and while most of the Dungeon they will be entering is finished, I still have one problem: puzzles.

The gimmick of the Dungeon is that it’s an ancient abandoned Magitech Dragoborn Laboratory built in a massive stalegtite over a seemingly bottomless saltwater lake, all of which is at the lowest level of the Underdark. Things came out of a pit, the Draginborn dissaproved, so first they threw in rocks, and more things came out, then they threw in magma, and more things came out, then they started emptying desert’s worth of sand into the pit and still stuff came out, so they dug a massive pipe to the ocean and filled it with saltwaypter. On the one hand, it definitely isn’t bottomless if tpit could be filled with saltwater, on the other hand, no-one ever went down to find out. Things still came out, but lesser things, at least comparatively, so they built 5 laboratories around the Lake to study it. They were connected to the rest of the underground Kingdom via magitech trams. In the end, they despcided to pack up and leave for reasons unknown.
(Tl;dr: lab built over lake of evil gribbles is abandoned because of reasons)

None of that really matters, though. What matters is that the doors have tow levels of securitym a key, and a puzzle. The key is so that only a few People can get in. The puzzles are so as if the keys are stolen, they still can’t get in. The puzzles can’t involve massive amounts of magic, and they need to be obtuse, with no available hints. Instead, the Players will be given a few notes belonging to a dead Scientist which essentially amount to password hints. The idea is that first they figure out what the hint means, then they figure out how it relates to the five chains, a wheel and an engraving of a frog with a beard that’s on the door. This is all really important for plot reasons, but so far not a single place I have gone looking for ideas in has given me more than one or twosolid ideas. I’m getting desperate, and my own mind is turning up blanks, and I’ve lost my old Professor Layton games at some point over the years. Pls help.

You'd probably also want it to be based around Dragonborn abilities, so they can still lend out their key to their subordinate, but not just anyone can use the key.

[Grim Portent]

Are you asking for help with ideas for how the door opens or just clues for how it opens? Either way we kind of need to know more about the door.

[Imic]

I need ideas for both, because my mind just keeps on drawing blanks. A door might, for example, have a keyhole and five chains, with the hint being a paragraph of gibberish with four lines, and five words in each line, the answer being to pull the fourth chain five times.

[Grim Portent]

Well to use that idea a simple one would be if each sentence corresponded to a single chain pull.

So four words, three words, two words, four words, five words so the combo is just 43245.

Gibberish notes could be something like.

In the chamber plain

A swaddling babe

sleeping lay

while dark things crept

from the waters deep below

[Iduno]

I need ideas for both, because my mind just keeps on drawing blanks. A door might, for example, have a keyhole and five chains, with the hint being a paragraph of gibberish with four lines, and five words in each line, the answer being to pull the fourth chain five times.

Knowing that the number of words was the clue (the players would not), I got the answer wrong.

Well to use that idea a simple one would be if each sentence corresponded to a single chain pull.

So four words, three words, two words, four words, five words so the combo is just 43245.

Is the answer "fuck it, let's just knock down the door?"


This reminds me of when I was going to mess with the players by having them complete a towers of Hanoi to get through a door, except the last piece is welded to the floor, and the answer is "the door doesn't even have a lock on it, but the poison gas vent is real." I got rid of that idea because it was too stupid for an insane AI who wanted to mess with people, and might the get characters all killed.