Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Adrian_Crane 02-15-07, 07:20 PM	Okay, first the disclaimer: I do not currently have a group, nor have I played DnD in a loooong time. However, I'll be returning to college life this fall, and I'm liking the idea of either getting a game going or joining one. That said, I've toyed with the idea of DMing and was wondering what advice the good folks on these boards might have. That includes anything from general ideas on getting past common obstacles, to specific house rule/setting advice and such. My own mentality is that heroes should be heroic and powerful, and things should be done with style. I'm a bit of an optimizer myself and check the CharOp boards regularly (something I personally think all DMs should do, so you can see if you've got a Pun Pun coming your way). I'm fine with the idea of players using solid builds, and I plan to lend a free hand to anyone who wants help making a concept viable. Off the top of my head, a few rules I plan to use: HP: High-powered variant. Max 1st level. Roll afterwards, but you can never get less than half your HD before CON modifiers. Half-Elves: Help me out. Not sure how to make them a decent race, perhaps the Human skill point bonus? Sorcerers: d6 HD, Eschew Materials as a bonus feat. Minor changes, and, IMO, not enough. Still, it's a start. I don't particularly feel comfortable changing more than that for my first game. Fighters: I'll advise against using the class for more than a two or four level dip, though people are certainly free to do as they wish. I'm seriously leaning towards getting Tome of Battle and instituting that system, though, just so everyone gets used to it from the start. Races: Any from any book, generally, but subject to approval and it'd better fit. Furthermore, nothing with an LA greater than +2 for my first game, period. If it does have +2, you'd better have a solid reason to have chosen it. Style DOES count, but wanting to be Das Ubermunschkin doesn't. I'm sympathetic on this point because I've got a Drow character concept (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=784819) I dearly love who I've yet to actually put into a game (need to find a group and DM I'd trust with him). Sources: Core + PHB II + Tome of Battle. Specific material allowed on a case-by-case basis; being a number cruncher, I'll try to be flexible, though I'll definitely send any serious doubts past the CharOp folks to see if things are too broken. Setting: Not sure yet. Likely Greyhawk, since FR seems a bit too full of god-like figures and it's cool for adventurers to be the big dogs. Alternately, maybe Eberron, though I'm not as fond of the five kingdoms setup for that one, and ditto on the scarcity of dragons. :evillaugh Gygax Quotient :evillaugh Low. If you're stupid, yes, expect bad things and death. However, barring outright idiocy, I like a somewhat forgiving approach. Death happens, but if you're attached to your characters, there'll be SOME way to get em back--either via an occasional get-outta-****-free moment, or if it's something serious, you can roll up an alternate char/party to go recover your dead selves. I'm gonna be playing as the kind of DM I'd wish for--make a good, consistent world with dungeons that make sense (again, as opposed to Gygax style pits). Leave a way out of any bad situation, though not necessarily a free lunch. It may take work, but it'll be there. Work with the players to further their own plots and storylines (I HOPE I get characters that developed. I can dream...). Fudge for style--if you come crashing through the stained-glass ceiling dome of the evil temple to bring some hard justice to the local cultists, expect the dice to favor you a bit just for the sheer awesomeness. :D Advice? Thoughts? Additional, fairly-simple houserules that'd help keep the game mechanically balanced? Philosophical musings? I'm open to all of it! :dancin:
Rillek_Denar 03-08-07, 04:03 AM	1. HP-I'm playing right now under a DM that has us max the dice for every die, and it's still a playable campaign. You variant seems fine. 2. Half-Elves-Don't worry about making them a decent race. If you're playing a half-elf, it's because you like their flavor, not because you care about character power. 3. Sorcerors-Neither of those are unbalancing, go for it. 4. Sources-Seems like a damned limited list. Unless you are plagued by many munchkins, it's fine to allow a broader range. If you are plagued by munchkins, make it core only... then outlaw Druids and Clerics. [evil laugh] 5. Advice: Don't play a DMNPC/DM-PC. I'm not gonna argue the point, just advise against it. 6. House-rules: My only major personal houserule is that when a character takes enough damage to reduce him to between -1 and -9 HP, he gets to make a Fort save (10+damage dealt) to remain concious. I like to see my players crawling off the battlefield, rather than getting stepped on. Just a thought... 7. Philisophical musings: "Have you ever thought about thought? I thought not..."
Ramses III 03-08-07, 04:45 AM	On setting: I'm currently running Eberron and it's great. I love the fact that it breaks away from the standard Tolkien ripoff cliche -- something both Greyhawk and Forgotten Realms are very guilty of. The Five Nations are IMO a pretty decent setup: they take up a little less than half of the main continent, and each one contains frontier areas where the PCs can run into various monsters, and much of the rest of the continent is actually pretty uncivilized -- not to mention the one of the Five that had two new countries carved out of it and was then destroyed, leaving a magical wasteland that splits the continent in half. Also dragons aren't really rare in Eberron. There is a whole secret society of them that meddle in the affairs of the common races, and some dragons just don't fit the mold of the draconic societies and just act like monsters, gathering hoards of treasure and eating livestock, people, and what have you. On PC backgrounds: The best way to get good PC backgrounds is to have a "20 questions" survey (it doesn't have to be exactly 20, of course) that you have the players answer about their character. Include such questions as what was your family life like, how did you get your class training, and of course the two most important -- what are your characters goals, and why is he or she an adventurer? Have fun, and good luck!
CharlieRock 03-08-07, 09:03 AM	Don't get all bent out of shape if the team goes outside of (what you thought of as) the box and defeat the bad guy easily. Yes, you do have to make things challenging, but I just got a whole batch of players that switched groups mid-campaign (as in they joined just yesterday) because no matter what their plan was the DM either fudged or wouldn't allow it. Yeah, it bites when your BBEG goes down in one round (and a surprise round at that) ,but don't worry. Bad guys have a way of popping up in the sequels.
mikeymichaelmike 03-08-07, 03:36 PM	Hey glad to have ya on board! You're the Dm you call the shots, however just remember the better your hereos are the tougher the villians need to be sort in actuality its sort of a draw. Not saying they're not enough tough baddies! I run my games the same way. My group only seems happy weilding +5 magic at first level.....(that's a joke) Good luck Mikey