Jul/087
Non-Combat Challenge = Story Roadblock!
Yesterday was Ruen’s turn behind the screen for our 4th edition Dungeons and Dragons round robin night. He pulled off one of my favorite game starting ploys and kicked things off with a combat encounter. Our 2nd level challenge was a lone ogre which he tweaked to be a solo encounter. Considering how powerful he appeared, I was a bit surprised to see that we survived the encounter (if he hit me twice I would have been toast). I’m now completely convinced that without a healer in the party the group would be toast. Everything does more damage and the monsters have WAY more hitpoints than ever before. Ruen assured us that the ogre was by the book and should have been on par with other solo challenges for our level.
Our next challenge was of the a non-combat (skill) challenge type where we were to gain information about the orcs and this “red eye” that they used to sack Fallcrest years ago. Ruen did a great job of developing backstory and intrigue but what he (and we) quickly realized was that if you’re used to giving out story information through roleplaying and cleaver party / NPC interactions then using a non-combat challenge is the quickest way to cock block your player’s progress. By failing skill rolls, story elements that the party needed to progress the game could not be uncovered leaving the party a bit in the dark. I’m not sure if this frustrated Ruen or if he just figured he’d rather just leave it to roleplaying because according to him he abandoned the system about 1/4 of the way into it.
Personally, I’d like to give skill challenges another go. I think for secondary plot hooks and player initiated plots the skill challenge system could be handy to at least give the players an uncertainty and randomness to their character’s pursuits. However, if a DM has some plot elements that the PCs need in order to progress the game and story then it’s best to find another way to bring them in instead of relying on the fickle toss of die.
During the final fight I discovered that a defender who can mark a character is the nemesis of a quick footed ranger. The 4th edition ranger is all about stick and move, stick and move. They’re badass when it comes to maneuvering for the hit and then getting out of range. Combine that with an allied defender and the ranger is relatively safe. However, if you stick that ranger up against a defender who can mark then suddenly he’s getting smacked down everytime he goes for higher ground.
All in all I enjoyed Ruen’s game. He does a great job of setting the scene and playing the NPCs to the hilt. I got a little chuckle out of his more direct style of DMing since I’m pretty sure the others arn’t quite so used to it (unless they perhaps see my games that way). Maybe it’s the army brat in me but I dig a little game table discipline. when it time for the game to roll then mind your lip and get ready for some action!
Jul/080
White Dragon 1 / 1st Level Adventurers 0
This previous Sunday we played our 2nd 4th Edition Dungeons and Dragons session for our round robin game. This time Daniel got behind the screen and enabled me to focus on playing my awesome axe and board fighter against some more pesky kobolds. I again enjoyed pushing kobolds around and otherwise being a relentless brute. Sure, the kobolds had a ton of hit points (which still gives me a wtf face) but they were no match for our intrepid group of adventurers.
Of course, that was before we rounded a corner and came face to face with a young white dragon! About 3 or so rounds in our party started dropping like flies. Granted, our strategy could have been better but hell we just started learning the game AND our character classes. Talk about increasing the incline on the learning curve! Our cleric did an awesome job of keeping me in the fight but in the end, we all went down like cheap hookers at the feet of one triumphant white dragon. Of course, it didn’t help that the DM informed us that he had only three hit points left. Oh well, if dragon’s heal as fast as 4th edition player characters after a fight then he’ll be good to go in 5 minutes.
I couldn’t tell if Daniel was proud or upset that he got his first TPK (Total Party Kill) as a DM. Considering it was a by the book adventure straight out of the DMG I think he was comforted in the fact that it wasn’t he who designed a nigh impossible fight.
So faced with either rolling up new characters or coming up with some crazy story of how we somehow got to survive the ordeal, Daniel decided on the later (with encouragement from some of us). He actually came up with a cool story idea involving destiny (I can hear Sean laughing now) where we’re later resurrected by a village who fortold our arrival. It’s a little more complicated than that but essentially it allowed those who wanted to continue to play their characters to do so and those of us (like myself) who wanted to try something else to go ahead. So I rolled up an awesome elf ranger and Ruen rolled a dragonborn paladin.
The rest of the adventure consisted of some small fights and some intense roleplaying that almost ended up in some PK action but thankfully cooler heads prevailed in the end and now we’re primed and ready for next game with Ruen behind the screen. My money is that he’ll kill the entire party twice so as not to be one uped and thus resulting in an ugly trend…
I think I’ll start designing my groundhog day adventure. 
Jun/080
4th Edition is Awesome, er I mean is the Suck!
I just wanted to point out how conflicted I am regarding Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition. However, before I begin let me preface by saying that I preordered the books. I’m one of those guys who openly looked forwarded to 4th edition. I was wooed by the Dungeons and Dragons podcast and what little I read about the new edition. There was a lot of speculation and gamers tripping their shit about the game coming out but I calmly decided to wait and see for myself.
So over the past two weeks I read through the entire Player’s Handbook and then last night I actually ran a game using the first two encounters from the sample adventure in the Dungeon Master’s Guide. After reading and playing/running the game I’ve reached the following conclusions:
- The Figher Kicks Ass Again: I played a sword and board fighter (er, axe and board) who kicked some serious ass. I had a blast pushing opponents around the battle map and otherwise being a total badass mamma jamma. The fighter is no longer the boring attack, hit, kill, next boring affair. He has all sorts of things he can do! He can challenge opponents, get free hits if they refuse to face him, push opponents around, etc… essentially, the fighter can act more like a MMO tank than he could in previous editions.
- DDOF (Dungeons and Dragons Offline): There is no denying where the developers got their inspiration. Classes are broken up into rolls such as defender, controller, striker and leader. Monsters are broken up into artillery, brute, controller, lurker, skirmisher and soldier. Rest for 5 hours and you are totally healed. Need I go on? Essentially, they redesigned the game to be fast paced and always in the heat of action. You wanna haggle the price of some loot you wanna sell? There’s no such thing as haggle! Sell that shit for 20 percent and get your ass back into the fuckin’ dungeon you Antique Roadshow Wannabe! But is that a bad thing? Eh, I sorta think so. There are too many rp type elements of the game that are missing. Perform and Appraise are woefully missing. There are no rules for crafting. I’m guessing these are elements that will be reintroduced in later supplements but it still sucks that those who want it know will havta house rule it.
- Attack Rolls and Saving Throws: I love how EVERYONE has to make an attack roll if they want to land a hit be it weapon, spell, pissing contest – you name it. No more auto hit fireballs. Plus, the to hit isn’t just AC. Sometimes you’re aiming for someone’s Will, Reflex or Fort score. If you hit then the effect happens until the person’s turn which at the end they get a saving throw. No more BAM I hit, aw but damn nothing happens cuz he saved. Now something will happen at least until it’s the target’s turn. Of course, saving throws are even more different. Everyone needs a 10 or higher to save. That’s it. There may be adjustments to the save needed but they’re few and far between that I could tell. Got a potent poison? Well, it better do a shitload of damage very quickly cuz chances are the target will shrug it off in a few seconds. It’s just so…. shortsighted. So instant gratification and 0 lasting impression.
- Healing: The way Healing Surges are handled as well as Extended Rests have me sighing in disappointment. Essentially, a healing surge is a autoheal that anyone can do once during an encounter and as many times as allocated by their class after an encounter. An extented rest is a 5 hour rest period where everyone heals up completely and then they all get their healing surges back. Jeez, all we need now is a Molten Core adventure and write up for the Druid class and we’ve recreated friggin’ World of Warcraft. That just doesn’t make sense! How can someone heal that fast in 5 minutes!?! Are they the fucking T-1000 trying to destroy John Conner and take his Bastard Sword + 2? It’s just such a leap from any sort of simulated pseudo reality and blatantly borrowing from the short rest and we’re back in the fight aspect of any MMO.
So, I guess it sounds like my overall opinion is 4th Edtiion is the Suck. Well, having bitched about those elements (and others that I can’t think of right now but know are there) I’m actually leaning more towards the Awesome as it is right now. Mind you, I have big plans for the Big Book O’ House Rules that I wanna write to make the game as awesome as 3rd edition while still being 4th ed. It’s just gonna take some time and a whole lotta playtesting.
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