Rolling Word Play – 6

Creating Roleplay ideas based on randomly generated words.  Here’s today’s selection.  Discover more about the Silver Rams, Mason Club and Clever Pinch.

Silver Rams
Mysterious silver coins have been appearing in the forest glade beside the village or Barol.  The coin’s design is not one used by the kingdom, and simply contains the outline of a ram’s head.  The villagers have been very cautious of the objects and have not dared touch them, but just two days ago a child went missing from this area, further fuelling the villagers’ panic.

What could be dropping the coins and were they responsible for kidnapping a child?  A story begins here…

Mason Club
A magical club used to shape large rocks as if they were putty.  Wooden in appearance, it acts as a normal bludgeoning weapon except when making contact with the properties in stone.  Then, it can mould the stone.  Very useful against stone constructs such as golems and especially useful if caught in a cave-in.

Clever Pinch
There is a term, to pinch yourself to make sure you’re not dreaming.  In the case of the gnomes who dwell in hovels about the Creln Hills, they have a different saying;  A ‘clever pinch’ is a way of checking that a gnome is still in control of themselves and to prove to others that they are who they claim to be. There are creatures in the Creln Hills who like to imitate and even control the minds of simple folk who are just getting on with living.  If a gnome says something particularly clever or out-of-character, they will be expected to pinch themselves to confirm their identity.  Before now, when there has been no ‘clever pinch’, conversations have stopped abruptly and the gnome or gnome imposter attacked.

Rolling Word Play – 5

Creating Roleplay ideas based on randomly generated words.  Here’s today’s selection.  Discover more about the Scalding Regret, Flimsy Bite and Hissing Health.

Scalding Regret
A natural ingredient placed in a stew to deter or punish deal breakers.  A powerful shaman needs adventurers to complete a quest, is happy to pay and give them provisions, but asks them to drink a stew with him to honour this task.  The drink is partly made of swamp weed only found in that area.  It dries and grows hot outside of its own environment. When eaten, it remains in the body for 3 days.  If the party venture out of the swamp area within those 3 days they will suffer horrific burns internally.  They will need clerical or shamanic healing to prevent further damage.

Flimsy Bite
A potential quest. A giant eel has been sighted in the lake where the natives of the area like to fish.  There hasn’t been one seen for many generations and they are afraid to go back into the waters.  Any adventurers who take on this task will find the eel is harmless to the beings as it only eating small plankton-like creatures.  If they follow it down into the waters, they will discover a clutch of eel eggs.  If they attempt to harm or move it or its eggs, it will attempt to defend itself.  The party must make the moral decision how to bring peace in the lake.

Hissing Health
There are ways to survive the jungle of Barvu but they have consequences.  Plenty of animals want to attack others or protect themselves with toxic skin and venomous fangs.  There is a type of snake called the Vulena that if placed on the body will heal them and protect the user from venom.  But it is also a parasite.  Take it off and the host creature will bleed profusely.  The more wounds a player gets and turns to Vulena for help, the more the snakes will assimilate into the host’s body.  There is a tribe in the jungle called the Vulens that is made up of humanoid Vulena.  This is the impact of those who forget themselves and give in to the jungle.

Rolling Word Play – 4

Creating RPG ideas based on randomly generated words.  Here’s today’s selection.  Discover more about the Lying Spoon, Slim Treasure and Motionless Snow.

Lying Spoon
Anything a person eats with this piece of cutlery will disguise the taste and deceive the taster. A delicious dessert will taste fowl whilst rotting meats will taste fresh and divine.  The spoon doesn’t however protect the user from poisons or disease, so consuming dangerous products will taste healthy but will still cause harm.

Slim Treasure
The Harp of Aratras has strings made of pure gold.  They are so finely made that they act as if they are hairs from the strongest horse or silk from the largest spider.  The wooden shell of the harp is beautifully decorated but the real value in in each golden string.  When plucked by a musician proficient in playing the harp, the sound is both earthy and warm, and is so unique that there is no sound quite like it.

Motionless Snow
In the Tarpa Seas is a mist that has been created by the Tarpa Waterfalls.  Some say that the source of the spring that created these falls is magically because it cures weapons of rust when placed in its waterways.  By the time the water gets to the falls it creates a mist that stays in the air and forms a dense, unmoving cloud.  The cloud is so dense and so magical that when the weather turns cold, the ice and snow crystals appears in the air, motionless. In such weather, it becomes impregnable for sea vessels and in some instances, 10 foot diamond shapes have formed, standing impossibly on one edge.  Only direct sunlight destroys the clouds, but they reform quickly as the mist ascends again.

Rolling Word Play – 3

The Inspiration of Chance and Improvisation – Word Play

I’m starting a series where I generate Roleplay ideas based on random words. Let’s see what words I get to play with today:

Massive Analyst
This is a pill taken by a creature that is desperate for an answer that they cannot yet grasp. Many of those that have taken the pill take a long time to re-emerge from their semi-comatose state.  Some never return, lost in the midst of a mental or spiritual maze.  For most, they have returned profoundly shaken and many are never the same again. The epiphanies they bring with them are often not simple and take events in a completely different direction.

Here is a way of playing out the effects of a Massive Analyst on a d10 die roll:

1 – Utterly lost. Re-roll again the following day to see what happens next.   Add a mental quirk to your character sheet from this life-altering experience.

2-3 – Confused in the unconscious realm. You re-emerge 1d10 days later, but have lost some of your mental sharpness.  Add a condition to your character sheet to reflect this.

4-5 –   You return quickly but altered by the experience.  Add a mental quirk to your character.

6-7 – You were unaffected by the experience and were able to return quickly.  You will gain +1 to the die roll if you ever decide to retake this pill.

8-9 – You found an answer to the question.  Check with the GM to see what wisdom you gained.

10 – You had a profound epiphany.  It is greater than you could have possibly imagined!  Check with the GM for details.

 Activate Understanding
A scene of devastation. Zombie roam across an area known as the Death Zone.  They are surprisingly fast and aggressive, attacking living organisms, which either bleed out or become animated undead husks like themselves.

The source of the trouble is in a grave.  A powerful magical ring was left with the corpse of an elderly lady who died a few years ago.  She carved it and used her magics to prolong her life.  As her own energy drained away, the ring’s stored energy was still working.  As the flimsy wooden coffin in which she was buried deteriorated, the ring’s influence tainted the soil and cause an un-life in the corpses of those in the graveyard.

The town records and library will have information on an old woman who dodged death for so long (she was over 140 years old) and where she was buried.  There is also information about how to use witchcraft to change the energy flow in an item.  Using a ritual and a few key ingredients, the ring’s energy can be changed to generate a flow of peace and rest.  This is a way to finally end the reign of un-life.

Sorry Accept Patience
A society run by a zealous religious faction expects their citizens to report their own sins and the sins of others.  For those who are brought to receive their punishments, they must first ask for repentance (Sorry), accept they are wrong and sign a confession (Accept).  Having signed, they must then await punishment, which will be delivered when the religious faction deem it appropriate (Patience).  This can sometimes take several years and can even be provided in smaller installments.  The faction controls the populous in this way, with fear of punishment and of being reported for sins.

Rolling Word Play – 2

The Inspiration of Chance and Improvisation – Word Play

I’m starting a series where I generate Roleplay ideas based on random words. Let’s see what words I get to play with today:

Drag Intention
A tactic used by a Gillatora; a long, spikey creature with 2 tentacles and a powerful beak.  It deliberately weakens its enemies by stunning them with its beak before grappling them and dragging them along the ground where rocks and other debris can cause further damage.  If the ground is smooth, it can also drag their victims along its spike-covered back.

Judge Cook
All societies have their own system of justice, on which they promote fairness and deter selfish, harmful actions.  In one particular society, the judge and the cook is one in the same.  Those who are found to be corrupt and selfish are prepared a complex and tasty food dish.  They then must replicate the meal and dedicate several hours and days (depending on the severity of the crime) to perfecting it.  If they are able to consistently impress the judge (often the same person who served them the original dish) then they are allowed to dedicate time to improve the dish.  This is not only a good way to improve recipes but a way of focussing the mind of the criminal.  This new dish becomes the ex-criminal’s new speciality dish.  One day, they too might become a judge-cook for other wayward citizens.

Basic Desperate Relationship
In a dystopian future, relationships are seen as essential.  Everyone must buddy up as single individuals have been found to be most likely to resort to terrorism and episodes of violence in this dark future. Where the relationship has started to breakdown, there is a certain amount of help provided to by the state. The relationship states are as follows:

Blissfully Operating (BO) Essential Functioning (EF) Basic Working Relationship (BWR) ….. Basic Desperate Relationship (BDR) Advanced Desperate Relationship (ADR) Failing Relationship (FR) Deadly Relationship (DR)

Those below the dotted line are considered a risk and a potential burden on society.  A BDR is usually because one partner raises complaints or their working efficiency is down below acceptable standards.  BDR provides credit to attend talks on relationship issues and attending a check-in (compulsory attendance by both partners to agree on ways to improve their relationship) once a week.

Advanced (ADR) includes counselling sessions and even starts with credit for a short holiday for first time offenders.  Failing and Deadly are a concern to the society at large.  Those caught before they do anything fatal result either in divorce of partners or a clean slate (memory wipe).

Rolling Word Play – 1

The Inspiration of Chance and Improvisation – Word Play

I’m starting a series where I generate Roleplay ideas based on random words.  Let’s see what words I get to play with today:

Relevant Salmon
A group of salmon who are dependent on a single entity for their survival.  Like a hive mind, they collect their intelligence and ‘pool’ it together into one fish, who leads the others; hopefully to salvation and safe spawning grounds.

There have been instances where a salmon has been caught and all other salmon have attacked the unsuspecting fisherperson until they dropped their catch.  Unfortunately a myth has grown up that killing the one, relevant salmon will grant you wishes.  There is no record of this being confirmed, but there are records of a single salmon being speared and the entire group instantly dying.

Drafty Chocolate
Made from cocoa beans grown in the harsh tropical caves of Hinreln, the taste mentally transports the user to those harsh, windy conditions.  The shock can be good or bad depending on the creature, but it has been proven to lower the body temperature significantly and is highly sought after by those in hot, desert climates.

Suspicious Negotiation
A term that can be applied to many situations, but the particular story to earn this title is a play, very popular in rural towns in which royalty do not reside.  The story starts with a king who rules over a peaceful nation.  In the story he sees a fey creature (the sort of creature varies with each telling) imprisoned in his city.  Fascinated, he ignores his advisors and buys the creature for himself.  The king asks it questions and using its charms and illusory powers the fey creature convinces the king that it can see into the future.  For each question the fey creature conjures up a dystopian vision which in turn feeds the king’s growing concerns.  As the story goes on, the visions get worse and the king’s paranoia alienates him from everyone around him.  The story ends with the fey creature tricking the king into being released.  It then kills then king and assumes his form.

The Inspiration of Chance and Improvisation

Dice roll tables and rolleable options can make up a great deal of the choices in Roleplaying sessions. The results of a sea voyage, chance encounters on the road to the next town, loot found in the room of a dungeon. The random element keeps things exciting. For a Games or Dungeon Master it can mean the plotline changes or lengthens, but so long as they are comfortable with that, then great.

Another crucial part of roleplay is the interactive story-telling. If you take part in a roleplay you are actively improvising. Worldly examples include the TV show Whose Line Is It Anyway and Robin Williams when he was creating characters like the Genie from Disney’s Aladdin.

I am lucky enough to take part in an improvisation session every fortnight. This is good for my vocal performance work but also complements roleplaying perfectly. The sessions with Rag and Bone Arts are such fun and so good at keeping you on your toes. Not only that, but they teach collaboration. If you are not working together then the story will go nowhere or one person will dominate and the story will suffer. In one scenario you might be a shop owner only speaking in questions, the next a gang of ex-pop stars in a dystopian future under an authoritarian regime. Maybe you are trying to sell beer dregs and cat hair marketing it as the new trendy drink or perhaps you find yourself as Juliet in a modern retelling of the classic tale. Yes, we played all these scenarios out and many more!

Roleplaying is about interactive storytelling and it includes all the above ingredients.

Making Combat Challenging

A lot is made of level-appropriate material.  In D&D combat, this term is referred to as CR (Challenge Rating).  A level 4 party will be roasted alive by an ancient dragon, but will also make meaty fries out of a similarly-sized party of goblins. To avoid Total Party Kill (TPK) or Total Party Boredom, the GM/DM has plenty of options…

Find a suitable opponent
The Critical Rating is made for this.  For example, a few Manticore will provide a good battle for five level 4 adventurers.

Add more fodder until they are dangerous
A band of goblins are easy to kill off, but not so easy when they can attack 3 times more than the players can.

Strategic advantage
Weaker opponents on a flat field or dungeon floor will be easy.  But what if they are ambushing the party and get surprise attacks?  Perhaps they have the high ground and ranged weapons or you are on uneven terrain that only your opponent can move across easily. Increase the odds against the players even further by having them stealth so as not to wake even more opponents or you could have traps in place in case they charge in unprepared.

Modified creatures
If the monsters are too weak, why not give them an extra arm, a magical weapon or poisoned arrows to increase their abilities. If the monsters are too powerful, then make them aged, young or mentally addled in some way, giving them disadvantages on their rolls.  Want the creature to have a special move not in the rulebooks?  Go for it!  If it makes the combat interesting, then why not!

Playing loose
This option is fun, if played right. Create creatures with only a few stats and hit points firmly decided, and be flexible with the rest, such as their moves and attacks.  This option is a way of keeping the players on their toes and making combat challenging. However, this option can backfire is done too often; especially if it appears to directly counteract the player’s moves (e.g. “aha, it is actually immune to damage by your fireball and your ranged weapons!”).  The important thing is to have an idea of what this creature is capable of and then improvising how it might react in a fight.

As always, the most important thing is for the players to have fun.  So long as the combat element of the game is varied then they will have plenty to sink their sword or arrows into.

Magic Users, Part II

How Characters Cast Spells

In Part I, I discussed the types of spellcasters and how they interacted with magic in the fantasy realm. It’s time to look at the mechanics of spellcasting.  How does it work in practice?

Here are the basics…

  1. Prepared spells:  Some spellcasters need to prepare spell for the day from a greater resource they have access to.
  2. Known spells:  Some spellcasters learn spells until they know them, meaning they do not need to prepare them in advance.
  3. Spell Slots:  Most spellcasters have Spell Slots (Monks are the exception), which represent their capacity to cast spells before their magic is used up and they need to replenish their energy.
  4. Spell Modifier:  All spellcasters use a modifier to work out how effective their spells are.  This affects their Spell Attack rolls and rolls for the Spell’s Difficulty Class for opponents to try and match or get a higher result when they roll a saving throw.

Each character class or sub class is a little different, so let’s compare…

Bards don’t study magic, they take what they know and perform. For that reason, bards have known spells and a charisma modifier.

Clerics are conduits for divine power.  They use Wisdom as a modifier.  They can cast any cleric spell available up to their current spell level, but need to have them prepared.  This is their Wisdom modifier + Cleric Level.

Druids draw on nature, as clerics draw on the divine.   They use Wisdom as a modifier.  They can cast any druid spell available up to their current spell level, but need to have them prepared.  This is their Wisdom modifier + Druid Level.

Eldritch Knight is a subclass of the Fighter.  Like Bards, they have known spells they learn as they improve and apply to their fighting style.  They draw from the wizarding spells and their modifier is Intelligence.

Monks learn to use magical energy called Ki.  They channel this energy in their martial art practices uses Ki Points.  The subclass Way of the Four Elements can cast elemental spells using Ki points.  Like Bards and Eldritch Knights, these become Known but are referred to as Elemental Disciplines and not spells.  They use a Wisdom modifier to determine out how effective their spells are.

Paladins learn to draw on divine magic as clerics do.  They use Charisma as a modifier.  They can cast any cleric spell available up to their current spell level, but need to have them prepared.  This is their Charisma modifier + half the Paladin’s Level.

Rangers learn to draw on nature as Druids do. But they behave far more like Bards and Eldritch Knights, applying what they have learned and using their Known Spell, learning more as they level up.  They use a Wisdom modifier.

Arcane Trickster is a subclass of the Rogue.  Like Bards and Rangers, they don’t study magic, they take what they learn and apply it. For that reason, these Rogues have known spells .  They use an Intelligence modifier.

Sorcerers have no need to study as magic is in their veins. Very much like Bards, they perform what they know.  Because of this, Sorcerers have known spells and a charisma modifier.  They also have Sorcerer Points, which can be used to enhance their spells in some way.

Warlocks are peculiar because although they have spell slots, all of these slots are the same level as their current spell level. They can still cast lower level spells but they will be using a higher level spell slot to do it.  They perform the gifts of their patron, so like Bards, they have known spells and a charisma modifier.

Wizards are the students of magic and draw from a spellbook to prepare spells (They should also use physical components as part of the spells’ preparations but not all roleplays apply this).  Because of this their known spells are whatever spells are in their spellbook, so researching and finding spell scrolls can be exciting!  They use the Intelligence modifier.  The number of spells they can prepare is their Intelligence modifier + Wizard Level.

Magic Users, Part I

Why spells can give players a headache!

Magic is as integral to D&D as dragons and faeries. It allows for anything to be possible; from creatures with strange, otherworldly abilities, to travel between planes, to crazy spells such as being able to polymorph into a dinosaur! But, to paraphrase a well-known superhero movie, with great power comes a great deal of rules!

The 5th edition rules for D&D have tried to keep spellcasting (using magic to affect something) as simple as possible, but it still takes some getting used to. That’s what we’re here to do…

In this first article, I’ll look at the different types of spellcasters.

Your spellcasters come under the following types…

1) those who have a natural gift for magic  2) those who study it  3) Those who are blessed with magical powers for their beliefs  4) Those who pick it up as they go along

The natural
The sorcerer is the gifted magic user, who has through some cosmic reason or exotic lineage been chosen to carry such power.

The student
Wizards are keen to master magic and require spell books to record what they have learned and to prepare their daily spells. Eldritch Knights also study magical techniques to enhance their fighting prowess. Monks learn to channel magical energy known as ki.

The blessed
Clerics and Paladins draw on the divine magic of their deity. Warlocks gain powers in return for serving their patron (an otherworldly being).  Barbarian Totem Warriors also gain gifts through their spirit animal. With nature as their muse, Druids and Rangers learn to use magic from their environment.

 

The knack
Gifted performers known as Bards learn tricks on the road as they perform and can weave magic with their music. The Rogue type, Arcane Tricksters also learn tricks which enhance their shadowy lifestyle.

That’s enough magic talk for now.  If you want to discuss anything in particular, let me know.  Next time, we get into the rules…