tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8935997561931650289.post5888185898938742530..comments2024-03-28T02:56:48.844-04:00Comments on Tower of the Archmage: Weather & Time in D&DDavid The Archmagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11649391406526258069noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8935997561931650289.post-25995571454469355662014-07-17T10:57:26.549-04:002014-07-17T10:57:26.549-04:00I am seeing more and more that tracking time and w...I am seeing more and more that tracking time and weather better than I have been as a DM will make the gaming better. I'm in the process of accumulating tow to make this easier. Suggestions? I have a candle/torch/lantern oil tracking chart, and it sounds like I should check B10. Any others?Pippin Stranohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13832001332414676400noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8935997561931650289.post-81604531949223520502014-07-16T16:43:05.615-04:002014-07-16T16:43:05.615-04:00We have a calendar, weather, and holy days when th...We have a calendar, weather, and holy days when they occur. Every time. I can't imagine playing without weather. <br /><br />I've yet to find a good "daily specials" food chart but I want one. Maybe I'll ask Chris Tamm. Scott Andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12067161332003628237noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8935997561931650289.post-54246976314981645862014-07-16T15:25:11.237-04:002014-07-16T15:25:11.237-04:00Ok, I can see that. It's been so long since I ...Ok, I can see that. It's been so long since I played 3.x that it isn't the first thing I think of. Like I said in the posts, it's more about old school style gaming - B/X and C&C in this case. And 4e is a great game, but it really should have been called something more like "D&D Tactics".David The Archmagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11649391406526258069noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8935997561931650289.post-76794767107475113472014-07-16T14:59:24.184-04:002014-07-16T14:59:24.184-04:00Sorry, to paraphrase myself -- I like camping and ...Sorry, to paraphrase myself -- I like camping and outdoorsy stuff. I don't like it when resource management features are balanced against combat features because they are too dissimilar. They don't balance. Resource management needs to be its own thing.<br /><br />--Ditherditherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16636135891319380870noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8935997561931650289.post-80490027237561910242014-07-16T14:55:28.528-04:002014-07-16T14:55:28.528-04:00Off-hand? 3e Dwarves have stone cunning which is u...Off-hand? 3e Dwarves have stone cunning which is useless in the woods. 3e Gnomes have "speak with burrowing mammals," which is generally useless in a city. Many playable races have low-light vision or darkvision factored into racial traits -- vision effects are of dubious utility. What if you never go underground or adventure at night?<br /><br />Each of these traits counts against your race's traits and many of them may never come into play.<br /><br />It isn't a matter of, "why do I have this if I might never use it?" It's that with so many effect types, the GM is challenged to cater to more character types. You can't blame the GM for not catering to each element -- the designers included these effects to "balance" with others and didn't account for the GM workload.<br /><br />My problem then, is that these effect types DON'T effectively balance against each other. I'd much rather have the dwarf's +2 to saves vs. spells than his darkvision. I could always carry a torch if I can't see -- but +2 bonuses to saves are hard to come by. The differences in kind are too great.<br /><br />It fails both to be "balanced" and "perfectly imbalanced." 3e isn't alone either -- 4e has the same problem.<br /><br />--Ditherditherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16636135891319380870noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8935997561931650289.post-23213178179133846632014-07-16T14:36:19.161-04:002014-07-16T14:36:19.161-04:00I'll have to check out B10.
And sure, it was ...I'll have to check out B10.<br /><br />And sure, it was a dark and stormy night is a great way to start, but by next morning? Partly sunny, 72 degrees, gentle breeze. David The Archmagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11649391406526258069noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8935997561931650289.post-31229684157893389362014-07-16T14:35:15.095-04:002014-07-16T14:35:15.095-04:00dither - I never really considered it tied into ra...dither - I never really considered it tied into race/class. Sure, the ranger and druid are probably better at surviving in the woods, but the thief is better at it in town. Doesn't mean the wizard and priest can't have backgrounds as outdoorsy types. Maybe they grew up as the children of loggers, or were in boy scouts. In the games I've played, tracking is a wisdom check. Resource management is for everyone. David The Archmagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11649391406526258069noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8935997561931650289.post-44350876128316492372014-07-16T12:24:10.493-04:002014-07-16T12:24:10.493-04:00I wouldn't have nearly so much a problem with ...I wouldn't have nearly so much a problem with weather and time if they weren't hardwired into race/class. It seems like the resource management elements should be equal-access to all characters, since it's a test for the players in-character, rather than a test for the characters.<br /><br />Put another way, I don't think a player should have to choose between being effective in combat versus being an effective at camping/tracking/orienteering. That just isn't a choice a player should have to make -- they're completely different situations and completely different challenges.<br /><br />--Ditherditherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16636135891319380870noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8935997561931650289.post-2257325741339658882014-07-16T08:12:39.170-04:002014-07-16T08:12:39.170-04:00Well, it was always a dark stormy night at the sta...Well, it was always a dark stormy night at the start of every adventure that started in Sharn because I felt like that was a good noir cliche to throw in.<br /><br />B10 Night's Dark Terror is such an amazing module. One little reason why is that it includes a table with the weather for the months in which the adventure is set. It's in a code, but once you've decoded a few entries you'll be able to read it with little trouble.Granger44https://www.blogger.com/profile/18310421413290986780noreply@blogger.com