Trying to get back into the game - a question and some ideas

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Bilgewriggler
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Trying to get back into the game - a question and some ideas

Post by Bilgewriggler »

I hauled out my stash of DCC stuff recently after several years of it lying fallow. Delightful reading as always, and I'm champing at the bit to run a new game.

But I've never resolved the head-scratcher of high-DC skill checks. Do characters ever have any hope of increasing their chances of success? I can't find anything in the rules that suggests any means of improving skills other than thieves' skills.

My inclination is to give a bonus of the character's level for trained skills, or half the level for untrained. Does anyone else do something similar?

Our group's chief impediment to maintaining enthusiasm for the game, previously, wasn't so much the character death as the potential for uselessness. A wizard got to 2nd level and started salivating at the possibility of finally becoming a little more effective ... but then rolled a 1 for hit points and, to add insult to injury, also got a lame spell with a bad mercurial magic result. So he was basically no better than at first level.

I'm debating the idea of letting characters burn luck on their hit point rolls to mitigate the hit-point situation, and maybe burn luck to move a mercurial magic roll up or down by one point per luck point. Good idea? Bad idea? I'd probably cap the hit-point option by saying they could not burn more luck than would take them to the maximum roll of their hit die.

Finally, I love the Birth Augur rule, but for characters with unexceptional Luck scores, it's just a pointless roll and something to write on their character sheets. So my thought is that if characters burn luck on rolls related to their Birth Augur, they could recover that luck at a rate of a point per day instead of just losing it permanently.

Thanks in advance for any input or enlightenment!
Purple Planeteers:

Jingles Coinclink, Halfling, hag-hacked into haggis

Nurzual the Faceter – M Jwlr - Wiz - L
S 12 A 8 (-1) S 9 P 11 I 15 (+1) L 10
AC 9 HP 6 Mv 30 Init -1 Ref 0 Fort 0 Will 1
Chalk 1pc, 20 gp Gem, Backpack, 10’ chain, 10 sheets parchment, Kith pouch, small hammer, ray-gun, Rope 50', 5gp 10sp 274 cp
shortsword +0(1d6)
Ch Psn (no MM), Clr Spr 65, Force Manip 81, Rd Mag 12, Spidr Cl 69
Pl.Common (basic)

Snooth Inksplot Scribe RIP under cave-in, a crushing loss

Qort Quiddlegit M Hlr - Cler - N(C?)
S 11 temp 14 (+1) A 11 temp 14 (+1) S 6 (-1) P 5 (-2) I 6 (-1) L 5 (-2)
AC 10 temp 11 HP 8 Mov 30 Init 0 Ref t+1 Fort 0 Will -1
club +0 (1d4+1t) - hand mirror, holy wtr, wtrskin Kith drink 12 oz drunk, 31 cp
-2 Ms fire damage
Det Magic

Brandybland Shoetree F Coblr N
S 10 A 9 S 10 P 8 (-1) I 9 L 9
AC 14 HP 1 Mov 30 Init 0 Ref 0 Fort 0; Will -1
gldtr glaive +0 (1d10) - gldtr ch mail - Fe spike, shoehorn, 48 cp
Prof: dagger
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DM Marcus
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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by DM Marcus »

Bilge...

You've tapped into a couple of good points that I've had players bring up in our games. First off, the bare-bones game design of DCC almost begs to be built upon, just like the original D&D was back in the day. Especially if you are looking at a long-term campaign where players want to get attached to and grow with their characters. So don't be afraid to assimilate tried-and-true game mechanics that your players will like.

I think all of the advice you will get around here is, "do what works for your table and it will be right."

My group came from four years of 4th edition D&D and they loved that iteration of the game. They are tactical players and that game was in their wheelhouse. They had powerful characters that they were attached to. DCC has been a harder sell on my end, and I have to home-brew some mechanics for them that I don't have to worry about when I'm running a one-shot at a con.

It just varies from table to table. Specifically, about your ideas... I like your idea about spending Luck right off the bat to get those HP up, especially if you are embarking on a long-term campaign. What's the harm? I know that DCC purists will balk, but the simple fact is, not all players are looking for the challenge of making an impossibly weak character work (though that can be brilliantly fun for the right player). you could do the same for the mercurial roll, but another alternative for that might be to let the wizard or elf Reroll a spell's mercurial effect each level (representing a better understanding of that magic) until they get an effect they like, and then they can stop rerolling whatever level they choose to cut their losses!

Lots of folks are going to soon discover the new DCC mechanic of "fleeting luck" that is a brilliant addition to the rule set (coming with the Lankhmar setting). That might be a mechanic that your players will love and enable them to live a little longer. :)
losloris
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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by losloris »

I am fully in favour of house rules for any and all situations provided they are consistent. To your MU's hp I would have ruled odd = 3, even = 4. No matter.

I like to encourage players to try new things (skills) and am fine developing new mechanics. Before arriving at my current math, which frequently involves rolling percentiles against some set of ability scores + level (all of which can be augmented over time, such as level) I had players make a note of the skill they were trying to use. There would always be a roll of somesort. Later, if that skill was tried again the roll would be modified depending on how successful the previous attempts had been. This required the players to keep a spare sheet tracking what they were trying.

Currently we have (my first) monk. I envisage this class as something like a ninja assassin. The player is reserved and timid making it an odd match between his style and his character's abilities. As we get into a situation I am pushing Kendo into thinking about moves like running up a wall for a somersault which creates a back attack. For each move I require at least a roll of dexterity, sometimes more. The players face in now regularly exploding with excitement and Kendo's list of moves is lengthening.

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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by GnomeBoy »

Bilgewriggler wrote: ... but then rolled a 1 for hit points and, to add insult to injury, also got a lame spell with a bad mercurial magic result. So he was basically no better than at first level....
So let's address it all, based on this one anecdote.

"What then does he DO about it?"

The thing I love about DCC is it puts the emphasis on characters achieving things, not being handed stuff to fulfill some preconceived ideas about "what I want to play/what I want my character to be like"...

That way, play becomes all about the characters. They have to seek out a way to toughen themselves up, if they weren't lucky enough to be born tough. They have to seek out mightier spells, if they want them. Got magic missile with a sucky Mercurial effect? Seek out a version that's better...

It can go beyond 'fixing' imperfections, too. "I want to be the mightiest swordsman EVER!" Well, it ain't a process of picking things out of the rulebook and cobbling that together -- it's a process of adventure, of seeking the mightiest weapon, and of challenging the other mighty swordsmen, and defending your tenuous position from upstart challengers...

So when you arrive at characters who are mighty and powerful and awesome, it's because they made themselves that way... They earned it, as testified by the heaps of bodies of those others who tried, too, and failed.

So when the player is not happy with his character, just turn it around into the character is not happy with his lot in life and wants to do something about it...!
...
Gnome Boy • DCC playtester @ DDC 35 Feb '11. • Beta DL 2111, 7AM PT, 8 June 11.
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Bilgewriggler
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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by Bilgewriggler »

DM Marcus wrote:
My group came from four years of 4th edition D&D and they loved that iteration of the game. They are tactical players and that game was in their wheelhouse. They had powerful characters that they were attached to. DCC has been a harder sell on my end, and I have to home-brew some mechanics for them that I don't have to worry about when I'm running a one-shot at a con.

...

Lots of folks are going to soon discover the new DCC mechanic of "fleeting luck" that is a brilliant addition to the rule set (coming with the Lankhmar setting). That might be a mechanic that your players will love and enable them to live a little longer. :)
Oh, man, you've got it even worse than I do if your group are 4E fans. We had some fun with 4E Gamma World, but the ultra-tactical nature of the rules just didn't fit for our fantasy campaigns.

That Lankhmar setting is sounding more and more enticing. I loved those books when I was a kid.
losloris wrote: I had players make a note of the skill they were trying to use. There would always be a roll of somesort. Later, if that skill was tried again the roll would be modified depending on how successful the previous attempts had been. This required the players to keep a spare sheet tracking what they were trying.
I think I like your skill idea better than mine. It could lead to characters stubbornly trying and failing at a given skill until they got better which seems like it has a lot of entertainment potential!
GnomeBoy wrote:"What then does he DO about it?"
Unfortunately, the answer is, "He continues cowering in the back for the next play-session or two while we finish up the current adventure. Then, because everyone else has power deficiencies they want to deal with too, he gets the short end of the stick as far as prioritizing his desired quest because his character is probably going to die in an area effect spell or trap anyway. Or I have to make up an adventure that has a general "everyone gets a buff at the end" boon as its payoff.

I do appreciate the "quest for it" aspect of DCC. But it's not the most satisfying answer for someone who feels utterly cheated by his level-up rolls in mid-dungeon with no guarantee that we won't end up in a TPK a week or two down the road before he gets a chance to propose that quest in the first place.

Since I'm the one who really wants to play this game, I feel it falls on me to make it a little more enticing to the play group.
Purple Planeteers:

Jingles Coinclink, Halfling, hag-hacked into haggis

Nurzual the Faceter – M Jwlr - Wiz - L
S 12 A 8 (-1) S 9 P 11 I 15 (+1) L 10
AC 9 HP 6 Mv 30 Init -1 Ref 0 Fort 0 Will 1
Chalk 1pc, 20 gp Gem, Backpack, 10’ chain, 10 sheets parchment, Kith pouch, small hammer, ray-gun, Rope 50', 5gp 10sp 274 cp
shortsword +0(1d6)
Ch Psn (no MM), Clr Spr 65, Force Manip 81, Rd Mag 12, Spidr Cl 69
Pl.Common (basic)

Snooth Inksplot Scribe RIP under cave-in, a crushing loss

Qort Quiddlegit M Hlr - Cler - N(C?)
S 11 temp 14 (+1) A 11 temp 14 (+1) S 6 (-1) P 5 (-2) I 6 (-1) L 5 (-2)
AC 10 temp 11 HP 8 Mov 30 Init 0 Ref t+1 Fort 0 Will -1
club +0 (1d4+1t) - hand mirror, holy wtr, wtrskin Kith drink 12 oz drunk, 31 cp
-2 Ms fire damage
Det Magic

Brandybland Shoetree F Coblr N
S 10 A 9 S 10 P 8 (-1) I 9 L 9
AC 14 HP 1 Mov 30 Init 0 Ref 0 Fort 0; Will -1
gldtr glaive +0 (1d10) - gldtr ch mail - Fe spike, shoehorn, 48 cp
Prof: dagger
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GnomeBoy
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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by GnomeBoy »

Bilgewriggler wrote:Since I'm the one who really wants to play this game, I feel it falls on me to make it a little more enticing to the play group.
Well, then bend the game in whatever way you need to, to satisfy the players.

It sounds like your campaign is more "series of adventures" than sandbox-y...
...
Gnome Boy • DCC playtester @ DDC 35 Feb '11. • Beta DL 2111, 7AM PT, 8 June 11.
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Bilgewriggler
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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by Bilgewriggler »

GnomeBoy wrote: Well, then bend the game in whatever way you need to, to satisfy the players.

It sounds like your campaign is more "series of adventures" than sandbox-y...
It's not a campaign at all yet. I'll be running modules to start with because the available ones are awesome, and because I'm too creatively strapped right now to lug in all the sand for sandboxery. With any luck, it will organically turn into a "real" campaign, but I need player buy-in for that.
Purple Planeteers:

Jingles Coinclink, Halfling, hag-hacked into haggis

Nurzual the Faceter – M Jwlr - Wiz - L
S 12 A 8 (-1) S 9 P 11 I 15 (+1) L 10
AC 9 HP 6 Mv 30 Init -1 Ref 0 Fort 0 Will 1
Chalk 1pc, 20 gp Gem, Backpack, 10’ chain, 10 sheets parchment, Kith pouch, small hammer, ray-gun, Rope 50', 5gp 10sp 274 cp
shortsword +0(1d6)
Ch Psn (no MM), Clr Spr 65, Force Manip 81, Rd Mag 12, Spidr Cl 69
Pl.Common (basic)

Snooth Inksplot Scribe RIP under cave-in, a crushing loss

Qort Quiddlegit M Hlr - Cler - N(C?)
S 11 temp 14 (+1) A 11 temp 14 (+1) S 6 (-1) P 5 (-2) I 6 (-1) L 5 (-2)
AC 10 temp 11 HP 8 Mov 30 Init 0 Ref t+1 Fort 0 Will -1
club +0 (1d4+1t) - hand mirror, holy wtr, wtrskin Kith drink 12 oz drunk, 31 cp
-2 Ms fire damage
Det Magic

Brandybland Shoetree F Coblr N
S 10 A 9 S 10 P 8 (-1) I 9 L 9
AC 14 HP 1 Mov 30 Init 0 Ref 0 Fort 0; Will -1
gldtr glaive +0 (1d10) - gldtr ch mail - Fe spike, shoehorn, 48 cp
Prof: dagger
Dumnbunny
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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by Dumnbunny »

1d5 random thoughts ...

The Purple Sorcerer generators gather together a number of published level 0 HP variants. The old standby of max at first level (0 in the case of DCC) has a long and illustrious history, and the benefit of simplicity.

DCC has these neat tidbits tucked here and there. For example, on page 124, under Picking and Rolling, we get the following recommendation:
No one wants to play the wizard with four useless spells! If the random determination results in a level 1 wizard with useless spells, the author recommends allowing the player to drop up to half the randomly produced spells and choose replacements.
Something like that might help your player (I get the possibly mistaken impression that he didn't care for the spells he started out with).

Also, consider the guidelines on pages 314-315. Things are quite a bit different in DCC compared with WotC versions of D&D. On the one hand, it takes time to learn a new spell (the rules suggest at least a week per spell level), so no learning spells in the middle of a dungeon. On the other hand, by these guidelines you're not at the mercy of a single dice roll to determine which spell you know.

A wizard may have learned about spells during their adventures, through rumours or fragments of clay tablet or scraps of parchment. They can then go quest for these. Or they may have come across actual spells, such as an old grimoire found in a dead wizard's tower, scrawled on a rolled up strip of demon's skin, and so forth. They can just straight up attempt to learn one of these.

Failing that, the Judge is to randomly determine 1d3 spells (per new spell they can learn) that they've been exposed to, and can now attempt to master.

Those Purple Sorcerer generators I mentioned above also gather together some published Birth Auger variants. I'm partial to Super Ray of Light myself, which gives the player +1 or their Luck bonus to the auger, whichever is higher.
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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by GnomeBoy »

Dumnbunny wrote:The old standby of max at first level (0 in the case of DCC) has a long and illustrious history, and the benefit of simplicity.
FWIW, I'd handle that as max at 1st Level. The Zeros are supposed to be squishy, and giving them all max hp might make funnel adventures not work the way they are supposed to work...

As for fixing characters as part of episodic play, you could always leave an indeterminate amount of time between the modules, have players give you a "wish list" of what they want to change/improve, and have stuff happen "off stage". You could assign a monetary value to the changes, as seems appropriate, which they'd have to pay to get the modification. You could even make it into a chart to roll on, to randomize which changes happen when...

It's not like there weren't changes in Fafhrd and the Mouser's lives that happened between the books.
...
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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by Raven_Crowking »

One should also note that "bad" mercurial results are not always as bad as they first appear to be.

Also, if you go into the game knowing that player X is concerned about his character's condition Y, you can and should use "....and also, the blah of someblah was lost in this place, which could undo Y" as a prompt to motivate the PC(s). Unfortunately, the blah of someblah only partially eases the complaint (to whatever extent you desire); to fully remove it you must seek the halb of somehalb in the next adventure.

The player has earned the fix with adventure and has stories to tell of how he did so. Investment in the PC one has earned is higher than in the PC one has been handed, so that's all to the good. The other players have just been encouraged to Quest For It themselves, so you can write plot hooks in your sleep. All is right with the world.

Or it would be if........
SoBH pbp:

Cathbad the Meek (herbalist Wizard 1): AC 9; 4 hp; S 7, A 7, St 10, P 17, I 13, L 8; Neutral; Club, herbs, 50' rope, 50 cp; -1 to melee attack rolls. Hideous scar.
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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by Dumnbunny »

GnomeBoy wrote:
Dumnbunny wrote:The old standby of max at first level (0 in the case of DCC) has a long and illustrious history, and the benefit of simplicity.
FWIW, I'd handle that as max at 1st Level. The Zeros are supposed to be squishy, and giving them all max hp might make funnel adventures not work the way they are supposed to work...
Hmmm, good idea.
Raven_Crowking wrote:One should also note that "bad" mercurial results are not always as bad as they first appear to be.
I someday hope to play a wizard with a mercurial effect of "when you cast this spell, someone you know dies" on Comprehend Languages :lol: .
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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by Bilgewriggler »

Dumnbunny wrote:1d5 random thoughts ...

The Purple Sorcerer generators gather together a number of published level 0 HP variants. The old standby of max at first level (0 in the case of DCC) has a long and illustrious history, and the benefit of simplicity.

(... snip ...)

Those Purple Sorcerer generators I mentioned above also gather together some published Birth Auger variants. I'm partial to Super Ray of Light myself, which gives the player +1 or their Luck bonus to the auger, whichever is higher.
I've spent waaay too much time rolling up 0 level characters on the Purple Sorcerer generator! I'm also happy to have the die roller, since I haven't bought the physical dice set yet ...
GnomeBoy wrote:As for fixing characters as part of episodic play, you could always leave an indeterminate amount of time between the modules, have players give you a "wish list" of what they want to change/improve, and have stuff happen "off stage". You could assign a monetary value to the changes, as seems appropriate, which they'd have to pay to get the modification. You could even make it into a chart to roll on, to randomize which changes happen when...

It's not like there weren't changes in Fafhrd and the Mouser's lives that happened between the books.
Or Conan's for that matter!

I do like the idea of an off-camera self-improvement quest. Maybe I could introduce a powerful NPC who wants various tasks handled that are beneath him but within the characters' means to deal with. He could assign them an adventure, then spend several weeks upon completion performing arcane experiments on the group to address their power issues. I could have a fun random table that caused various undesired transformations before eventually accomplishing the wished-for effect.

Hmm...
Raven_Crowking wrote:One should also note that "bad" mercurial results are not always as bad as they first appear to be.
We did have someone roll "Gibbering allies" for some spell that would be ruined by the effect (Ventriloquism, maybe). Sadly, the player failed to realize that he'd just been given a 1-minute-duration aura spell that could potentially damage multiple enemies every round on any spell check above 11.
Dumnbunny wrote:I someday hope to play a wizard with a mercurial effect of "when you cast this spell, someone you know dies" on Comprehend Languages :lol: .
"At Great Cost" was one of the first mercurial magic rolls anybody in our group made. He thereafter refused to let anyone who joined the party tell him their name, but would introduce himself to enemies in hopes that if he cast the spell in battles against them, they'd be the one to die.
everybody wrote:(cool stuff)
Thanks for all the input!
Purple Planeteers:

Jingles Coinclink, Halfling, hag-hacked into haggis

Nurzual the Faceter – M Jwlr - Wiz - L
S 12 A 8 (-1) S 9 P 11 I 15 (+1) L 10
AC 9 HP 6 Mv 30 Init -1 Ref 0 Fort 0 Will 1
Chalk 1pc, 20 gp Gem, Backpack, 10’ chain, 10 sheets parchment, Kith pouch, small hammer, ray-gun, Rope 50', 5gp 10sp 274 cp
shortsword +0(1d6)
Ch Psn (no MM), Clr Spr 65, Force Manip 81, Rd Mag 12, Spidr Cl 69
Pl.Common (basic)

Snooth Inksplot Scribe RIP under cave-in, a crushing loss

Qort Quiddlegit M Hlr - Cler - N(C?)
S 11 temp 14 (+1) A 11 temp 14 (+1) S 6 (-1) P 5 (-2) I 6 (-1) L 5 (-2)
AC 10 temp 11 HP 8 Mov 30 Init 0 Ref t+1 Fort 0 Will -1
club +0 (1d4+1t) - hand mirror, holy wtr, wtrskin Kith drink 12 oz drunk, 31 cp
-2 Ms fire damage
Det Magic

Brandybland Shoetree F Coblr N
S 10 A 9 S 10 P 8 (-1) I 9 L 9
AC 14 HP 1 Mov 30 Init 0 Ref 0 Fort 0; Will -1
gldtr glaive +0 (1d10) - gldtr ch mail - Fe spike, shoehorn, 48 cp
Prof: dagger
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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by GnomeBoy »

Bilgewriggler wrote:...I do like the idea of an off-camera self-improvement quest...
Were it me, I'd probably use it as the seeds of home-brewed adventures down the line. "That crazy old wizard in the swamp you've been doing chores for? Well, you're not going to guess what's up with him now....!" ~adventure explodes in the PCs faces~

Just another two cents.
...
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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by Raven_Crowking »

Dumnbunny wrote:
Raven_Crowking wrote:One should also note that "bad" mercurial results are not always as bad as they first appear to be.
I someday hope to play a wizard with a mercurial effect of "when you cast this spell, someone you know dies" on Comprehend Languages :lol: .
No doubt the ghost of your barber would appear to translate for you.
SoBH pbp:

Cathbad the Meek (herbalist Wizard 1): AC 9; 4 hp; S 7, A 7, St 10, P 17, I 13, L 8; Neutral; Club, herbs, 50' rope, 50 cp; -1 to melee attack rolls. Hideous scar.
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Re: Trying to get back into the game - a question and some i

Post by Bilgewriggler »

GnomeBoy wrote:
Bilgewriggler wrote:...I do like the idea of an off-camera self-improvement quest...
Were it me, I'd probably use it as the seeds of home-brewed adventures down the line. "That crazy old wizard in the swamp you've been doing chores for? Well, you're not going to guess what's up with him now....!" ~adventure explodes in the PCs faces~

Just another two cents.
:idea: :)
Raven_Crowking wrote:
Dumnbunny wrote:
Raven_Crowking wrote:One should also note that "bad" mercurial results are not always as bad as they first appear to be.
I someday hope to play a wizard with a mercurial effect of "when you cast this spell, someone you know dies" on Comprehend Languages :lol: .
No doubt the ghost of your barber would appear to translate for you.
:lol:
Purple Planeteers:

Jingles Coinclink, Halfling, hag-hacked into haggis

Nurzual the Faceter – M Jwlr - Wiz - L
S 12 A 8 (-1) S 9 P 11 I 15 (+1) L 10
AC 9 HP 6 Mv 30 Init -1 Ref 0 Fort 0 Will 1
Chalk 1pc, 20 gp Gem, Backpack, 10’ chain, 10 sheets parchment, Kith pouch, small hammer, ray-gun, Rope 50', 5gp 10sp 274 cp
shortsword +0(1d6)
Ch Psn (no MM), Clr Spr 65, Force Manip 81, Rd Mag 12, Spidr Cl 69
Pl.Common (basic)

Snooth Inksplot Scribe RIP under cave-in, a crushing loss

Qort Quiddlegit M Hlr - Cler - N(C?)
S 11 temp 14 (+1) A 11 temp 14 (+1) S 6 (-1) P 5 (-2) I 6 (-1) L 5 (-2)
AC 10 temp 11 HP 8 Mov 30 Init 0 Ref t+1 Fort 0 Will -1
club +0 (1d4+1t) - hand mirror, holy wtr, wtrskin Kith drink 12 oz drunk, 31 cp
-2 Ms fire damage
Det Magic

Brandybland Shoetree F Coblr N
S 10 A 9 S 10 P 8 (-1) I 9 L 9
AC 14 HP 1 Mov 30 Init 0 Ref 0 Fort 0; Will -1
gldtr glaive +0 (1d10) - gldtr ch mail - Fe spike, shoehorn, 48 cp
Prof: dagger
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