The Gaming Den

One of the problems with randomly generated treasure is that is generates items that should not exist . Particularly, when dealing with combinations of weapon and armor types and abilities, rolling randomly leads to the production of large numbers of items that are so inefficient and inferior compa...

I get what you're saying Kaelik. How broad in scope should Y (or Z) be able to be though? Does that not matter and the responses should just scale up with the challenge? To cross the stream, I jump. To cross the river, I swim. To cross the sea, I fly. To cross the ocean, I teleport. To cross the pla...

This comment should probably be split into it's own topic, but it's sort of related to the tuning fork discussion. How many roadblocks or inconveniences should the MC throw in the way of player plans or declarative statements to create a satisfying experience? How many become just too much pointless...

The whole plot from Fallout 1 comprises a broken water purifier and how hard it is to find the chip to get it back to work. Now they make it a banal affair. Are they that ignorant of FO canon ? About combat: its best than ever. While everything else is worst. This is Bethesda's Call of Duty. The wa...

I've always viewed comic book continuity more like the ink-and-paper version of a daytime soap opera/telenovela than the sort of continuity you might find in a series of novels. That is, it feels like a low-stakes environment where nothing really matters.

Create a black superhero. Or a female superhero. Or a gay superhero. Knock yourself out. Creating such characters doesn't bother me in the least, because I have no fucks to give. But I resent the rabid, overzealous "progressive" SJW assholes that want to crucify and slander people for rej...

Ancient History wrote: Honestly, at this point the GOP might want to look at reforming the debates as some sort of elimination system.

I vote they go with Thunderdome.

@Blicero -- I just went back and read your ACKS review this morning. The economic aspects sound like they'll appeal to the board gamers I mentioned earlier. The really dumb grognardy bits aren't too difficult to excise? Like, getting rid of that THAC0-esque system isn't going to cause a lot of probl...

Other than 3.5/Pathfinder, what game would would you guys recommend as a fairly solid system for running a generic fantasy adventure for a couple of players that are experienced board gamers, but are wholly new to RPGs in general? Related to this, does anyone have any input on Fantasy Age and Titans...

Clinton had a strong showing, even if some of her answers were unsatisfactory. I'm prepared to vote for her if I have to. I think I get what you're saying here, but I'm puzzled by the unspoken alternatives. Like, is it possible that Clinton could have said things that would cause you to abstain fro...

Damn, Maxus. My condolences.

Quick survey, since this is a diverse community of busy adults with careers and families and shit... How many different games do you play in? How often does your main group meet? How long are your sessions typically? If you're playing a game like D&D or Pathfinder, how long do you think it shou...

I think you probably want at least somewhat more granularity than 'production points.' In D&D, you have Ogres, who are great for mining and hauling, but not good at fine work; you also have kobolds, who can do elaborate machines but are crap at anything requiring brute strength; and you also ha...

3.5 giveth and taketh away in re: spells. I liked that the 3.0 +Stat spells were Hour per Level - you could basically run through a full adventuring day on them. I disliked that they were variable effect, though. Plowing them down to round/level just meant they didn't get used at our tables in 3.5 ...

I'd guess the intelligence target is whatever's "good enough" to be beneficial to the end user. Like, if you view a sex robot as akin to an appliance, you don't want to have to negotiate with your coffeemaker, refrigerator, or vacuum in order for them to do their thing. You do want your co...

If you go by the class levels and features as assigned by normal d20, this is true. That's part of the reason for wanting to divorce the class features - if a fighter could buy a feat chain every time a wizard gets access to a new level of spellcasting, it still wouldn't be exactly equivalent, but ...

Could powers be priced effectively if you abandoned the idea that this had to be doable by hand, on paper? If you committed to the idea that a character generator was a requirement, would it then be possible to create a pricing scheme that charged variable prices depending on what other abilities we...

Known by whom? Spontaneous monster summoning is only one feature of the Druid class, and there are Druid variants without this ability. So why do you believe that spontaneous monster summoning is so completely integral to the Druid class? Spontaneous monster summoning didn't even exist before the a...

I do not want to be a Beguiler variant. My aptitude with spells is not based upon magical misdirection. That's not what I fucking want. Why is this so hard for you to understand? I didn't say that I was against battlefield control; I said that I don't want to be a spontaneous monster summoner. Then...

Thanks, Kaelik. The videos have led to attempts at defunding in several states, and countless investigations. It's... I think they should actually pursue it. I think that would play into conservative persecution fantasies. Big bad Planned Parenthood trying to use the corrupt law to silence the nobl...

I don't think it's just your shop. Around my workplace, as well as with customers and suppliers, everything is in thou as well. 125 thou, 30 thou, 5 thou, and half thou are all used when discussing tolerances.

Attacking an ablative resource (like hitpoints) tends to feel more fair for more players for a number of reasons. Even if you accept that an opponent can one-shot you with melee damage, it's usually easy to recognize the danger a great axe poses. A 3" pixie with the ability to cast 9th level s...

So, playing through the old Temple of Elemental Evil game on PC recently has renewed my appreciation for Save or Die. Anything that helps mitigate the HP grind is a blessing. At the very least, anything that keeps some of the enemies out of the fight for a while is a necessity. Since the game moves ...

Are there any extremely large underground caves or cities or whatnot who have maps that are easily available online? Brainstorming for a future campaign and I need an underground area large enough to contain several beastman tribes, the wreckage of a smallish starship (Think of one of those smaller...

If level appropriate folks can ignore my wall of stone casting, you've just made wall of stone a trap option. There are better spells to deal with mooks. Having a chance to dash through a wall before it is fully placed, or the ability to spend actions and resources on smashing it, climbing it, jump...