Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Nevvur Jun 19, 2015 0:14:05	Any chance on the 2 diagonals = 3 spaces on a grid for S3 ALPG? Simplicity be damned, it's always bothered me that diagonal movement, and ranged attacks made on diagonals are incentivized by this increased distance.
#2 Ainulindalion Jun 19, 2015 6:15:55	But, but... Fireballs are supposed to be cube shaped, right?
#3 imaginaryfriend Jun 19, 2015 6:23:25	Moebius strip is the way to go
#4 zingbobco000 Jun 19, 2015 7:09:11	Nevvur wrote:
#5 Pauper Jun 19, 2015 7:10:03	Nevvur wrote:
#6 ChrisCarlson Jun 19, 2015 7:52:04	Use hexes.
(Reply to #6) Nevvur	ChrisCarlson wrote:
(Reply to #7) TheBreen	Nevvur wrote:
#9 SteveMND Jul 08, 2015 7:40:26	Nevvur wrote:
#10 Kalani Jul 08, 2015 8:01:19	Technically speaking, you cannot use hexes in AL. Permission is granted for playing on a grid only. Hexes are not included in that permission.   WIth that being said, I see no reason why you couldn't use hexes as it doesn't break anything. Just keep in mind that Hexes =/= playing on a grid and so this is technically illegal.
#11 Pauper Jul 08, 2015 8:57:21	Playing on hexes doesn't fix the 10' or 15' radius problem. It does help with the 'ogre exception' (the odd quirk in Third Edition that, on a grid, a creature with 10' reach threatens the square two diagonal squares away if you don't count the second diagonal as double, but doesn't if you do, meaning a creature can move directly from that square to be adjacent to the ogre without provoking an attack of opportunity), but that's not an issue in Fifth Edition, save for a few exotic PC builds.   In my experience, the biggest benefit of playing on a hex grid is that it shuts up people who think playing on a hex grid is superior to playing on a square grid. A hex grid restricts movement (only six directions instead of eight) and is difficult to adjudicate with non-natural terrain (buildings and other crafted works tend to be square rather than hex-shaped, which makes for a lot of potentially unusable space on a hex grid).   For the greatest 'accuracy', play on a blank map, or ignore the grid on the map you're playing on, and use movement and rangefinding by rule (that is, use a ruler or other measuring device to determine how far someone moves or how far away they are), as Nevvur notes above. Using any sort of grid and requiring that movement and spell shapes must conform to that grid speeds up play by simplifying the assumptions of the game, and should probably be considered the default for time-constrained play.   -- Pauper
(Reply to #11) Coredump00	Pauper wrote:
#13 Pauper Jul 08, 2015 9:54:41	A grid definitely helps to maintain scale for a battlemap, true.   With that said, your point is entirely valid -- there's nothing in the rules that requires the use of any grid, as all distances are given in feet, miles, or other units, and the rules take pains (mostly) to avoid referring to distances in grid-spaces (squares or hexes).   My own experience is that players whose main D&D experience was in Fourth Edition might balk, since they're used to thinking of squares as the default unit of measurement, but folks who've been around since AD&D tend to respond to grid-less play as a refreshing return to the good old days.   -- Pauper
#14 Kalani Jul 08, 2015 10:01:12	I personally tend to use a combination of gridless, squares, and theatre of mind (depending on the situation. Minor battles I tend to play out gridless - sometimes even without a map (and just placing the mini's in a relative position from each other). In such situations, I tend to mark the borders of the battle map and any major features with objects - pencils, drinking cans, - a ruler to indicate the river, an eraser to indicate a bridge, etc.   Major set-piece battles I tend to draw out on a grid.... I also tend to have players line up their mini's in marching order (in the center of the board) in case of an unexpected encounter...    I have also used dice to represent distance between the main combat, and one or more characters on the outside edges (with the dice representing how many squares away from the action said character is). This allows me to focus on the main combat (which is gridded), while the stragglers are in a relative direction from the action, and a set distance (eg. 11 squares away).    I also use dice to represent elevation (if two or more combatants are on different elevations). Characters on solid ground have no dice, while characters which are climbing/flying/suspended would be given an elevation dice.
#15 shintashi Jul 08, 2015 14:08:58	eight bit fireball   OMMO MMMM MMMM OMMO   OOMMOO OMMMMO MMMMMM MMMMMM OMMMMO OOMMOO   Know what I'm saying?