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Any D&D/D20

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[Jimmy]

Yeah, I'll just stick to the average formula of "CR = NPC class HD -2 or PC class HD -1" and call it a day. I already spend hours each week preparing the encounters for my players, I'm not going to spend extra time comparing damage output and AC/HP/Saves too.

Random Encounter Idea: As the players camp for the night or are travelling for the day, have them roll Perception checks. They hear a strange wailing sound, DC 16 Spellcraft to identify as an Alarm spell. Three rounds later, an abandoned heavily damaged airship flies overhead.

Need to wait until players have viable means of access to flying object before use of this encounter idea. Options include flying mounts, flight spells or teleportation abilities. Use swarms of flying creatures such as Stymphalidesas the encounter type should they board the vessel, and treasure could be the magical power core of the ship (treat as a valuable gemstone) or alternatively a treasure chest full of loot. Per SRD, an airship is 20 ft. by 60 ft. in size, so fairly small encounter area. Additional ideas include a reverse gravity spell trap for the underside of the vessel for anyone climbing up a rope if the party try to get everyone on board, or some form of area of effect lightning based damage trap for a damaged power core. Flight mechanisms on airship should be encountered as completely destroyed to avoid the party gaining a 50,000 gp value airship. Removal of power core triggers countdown effect before vessel crashes.

[Tawa]

Huge D&D monsters are really, really tiny.

I was considering the size of Monster Hunter monsters and thinking about how large they'd be in a D&D game when I realized that in D&D the maximum size for a creature, Colossal, is 30 feet by 30 feet. D&D ancient wyrm dragons are half as long as a steam locomotive. This is not right. Taking a closer look, a lot of stuff is really, really off; D&D tyrannosauruses should be over twice as long, going by one of the graphics in the linked page, seeing as in D&D they're a mere 15 feet long for some reason.

This is probably just for gameplay--it can't be easy fitting a 12-inch-by-12-inch miniature onto your tabletop--but it doesn't seem right that the Tarrasque is smaller than a train car.

E: It's especially weird considering D&D dungeons are designed with excessively large rooms in mind. Nobody in D&D builds a normal-sized room, they're all like fifty feet by forty feet because  a 10x10 room is too small for a fight.

[Neonivek]

Huge D&D monsters are really, really tiny.

I was considering the size of Monster Hunter monsters and thinking about how large they'd be in a D&D game when I realized that in D&D the maximum size for a creature, Colossal, is 30 feet by 30 feet. D&D ancient wyrm dragons are half as long as a steam locomotive. This is not right. Taking a closer look, a lot of stuff is really, really off; D&D tyrannosauruses should be over twice as long, going by one of the graphics in the linked page, seeing as in D&D they're a mere 15 feet long for some reason.

This is probably just for gameplay--it can't be easy fitting a 12-inch-by-12-inch miniature onto your tabletop--but it doesn't seem right that the Tarrasque is smaller than a train car.

E: It's especially weird considering D&D dungeons are designed with excessively large rooms in mind. Nobody in D&D builds a normal-sized room, they're all like fifty feet by forty feet because  a 10x10 room is too small for a fight.

Unfortunately dungeons and dragons after you get to a certain size goes for more of a... "Interpretable" size once you hit maximum (mostly because otherwise it becomes unmanageable).

As for Huge Monster being small... It is more the type of monsters they are going for. Elephants are Huge. They aren't trying to make all monsters giants into the sky.

As for the T-Rex... Given that they take up a 15ft square and have a 10ft reach... Nope it is all fine. Remember that the dimensions are not the dimensions of the creature but can be thought of as more their area of control.

Now going by the measurements the books give for sizes!

Diablos from Monster Hunter IS! Gargantuan but can push on colossal. Rathalos is... Firmly Gargantuan.

The Statue of Liberty is... Colossal. Not even within Colossal+

But I'll translate the monsters here...

Dalamadur: Colossal+
Dah'ren: Colossal
Nerscyllia: Huge
Seltlas: Huge
Deviljho (seriously? That is its name?... Devil Joe): Colossal (barely, my personal rating is Gargantuan, but definitely at the max)
Gore Magala: Gargantuan

[SOLDIER First]

what about jhen mohran

[Neonivek]

what about jhen mohran

Colossal (don't get me wrong the LARGE end of colossal... once you get the colossal+ sizes your basically living locations... Not even an animated Castle is Colossal+)

I should state that this is 3.5

Pathfinder doesn't have Colossal+, and 5e doesn't have anything above Gargantuan. (Mind you, if there are bigger monsters... you default to the biggest regardless).

Jhen Mohran would likely though get the full 50ft area treatment in Pathfinder.

-Edit- Apperantly I am wrong... Colossal+ is within the same 30x30 area... Colossal++ is in the 50x50 area... O_o... Though Colossal+ doesn't really affect anything.

[Jimmy]

Adventure Idea: The dwarven cleric in the group has a rather unique mount. Instead of a heavy war horse like the rest of the group, he's selected a war trained bison. Not a bad choice from a stat perspective, since it's a better CR monster and costs one tenth the amount of a horse. Thematically I make sure to describe how bad it smells and how many flies it attracts to keep the balance compared to the rest of his group, but he's pretty fond of his war cow.

So as a random encounter, I plan to have the group meet a lone traveller in the morning as he walks into their camp at daybreak, a few hours before the group are ready to start travelling. The old traveller asks to share their fire and brew a pot of tea. Assuming they accept the offer, he'll make small talk, then eventually express interest in the cleric's mount. He'll say he's been looking for a reliable steed and the war bison would suit him perfectly, assuming the cleric is willing to trade for it.

So, what's the old traveller offer our cleric in payment?

A handful of magic beans.

Of course, assuming we reach this far without our players getting paranoid and avoiding the encounter entirely, the players will definitely pick up on the obvious Jack and the Beanstalk reference. If they take the deal, the traveller will depart with his new mount, and instruct them to plant the beans at sunset. The next time they strike camp, they'll discover the war cow wandering into their camp, along with a golden holy symbol hanging off the saddle.

Functionally, the beans act as a single use magic item of permanent Teleportation Circle when planted, save that it requires an easy Climb check to ascend up the beanstalk into a permanent cloud at the top, leading of course to a 'dungeon' full of giant typed creatures.

[Tawa]

As for the T-Rex... Given that they take up a 15ft square and have a 10ft reach... Nope it is all fine.

Hm. I didn't think of factoring in reach. Factoring it in both ways... I guess that's about right. Gives the T-rex 35 feet of reach, and I'd be willing to bump it up a size category or so for bigger ones. I suppose that puts great wyrm red, silver, and gold dragons in a better position (~70 feet).

I'd still have to invent a size category if I were to put the Mohrans or Dalamadur in, though

[Neonivek]

I'd still have to invent a size category if I were to put the Mohrans or Dalamadur in,

Personally I'd probably just outright not handle them that way.

I mean... the game has stated out Island Turtles (I don't think that was their name) which are entire island habitats on the back of colossal turtles that could swallow ships whole.

But if I made players fight it... I am not sure I'd want to plot a 200x200 figure.

---

I really should start converting the Monster Hunter creatures to 5.0 and/or Pathfinder.

[GiglameshDespair]

After a certain point of size, your players shouldn't really be able to damage them.
Oh, you stabbed the island sized turtle in the fin? Congrats, your sword sank up to the hilt and gave it the equivalent of a mosquito bite. It might even have noticed.

[Neonivek]

After a certain point of size, your players shouldn't really be able to damage them.
Oh, you stabbed the island sized turtle in the fin? Congrats, your sword sank up to the hilt and gave it the equivalent of a mosquito bite. It might even have noticed.

It used to be that you couldn't. It was only the fact that your weapons were magic or the implication that you might have found a way to do some damage with your level.

5e REALLY REALLY stands out next to all the dungeons and dragons games that came before in that it is the only one where an army... is an army (and isn't trying to luck into natural 20s to do damage).

Where early dungeons and dragons used to have creatures who were outright immune from attacks from things too weak...

[Ghills]

Just ran our second Skype session. Lessons learned:

1) Mic in the middle of the table is super necessary, otherwise remote players often can't hear
2) Camera needs to be mobile enough so that it can be moved to show maps. Alternatively, send out maps beforehand
3) I as DM need to up my descriptions.  Rehearse them beforehand or something.

Our barbarian has apparently decided to develop his skill with Improvised Weapon (the fools fighting me).  I've been letting him get away with athletics and acrobatics checks, but if this keeps up for another session he's getting an entry on his character sheet.

[Neonivek]

Yeah I don't know why it is about mic sessions but where by text I give a lot of description...

By voice I skip a lot of it... To admit a LOT of it is nervousness and I end up skipping details I wrote long in advance.

[Rolan7]

My new Vampire character debuted well!  A cloistered Ventrue servant who, after a long period of time, has finally been tasked with her... journey?  In the journeyman sense.  We couldn't figure out what the word for that is.  I'm sure there's a name for the post-apprenticeship journey which ends with the journeyman returning home and creating a literal masterwork (becoming a master).

Anyway I can't say too much without spoiling.
And I can't say *anything* about the massive reveals which finally dropped about *everything that happened before*, heehee, because they largely involve my previous character and his sire.  But I'm definitely going to write a proper chronicle when this campaign is done.

Suffice to say that certain Mehkanations came to light.  Or DID THEY?  heehee

Also also I'm seriously enjoying New World of Darkness a lot.  I loved staying up all night crunching builds in 3.5e and we told some good stories (some of which I shared, and which I should probably attempt to compile too) but this seems like a better fit for me.
But again, we did have to deal with a really broken player character who was breaking rules.
And it wasn't Pathfinder (Pathfinder blows my mind though, even coming from 3.5e)

[Tawa]

"Journeyman years", according to Wikipedia. Traditionally, the trip is 3 years long.

[Rolan7]

I guess that's it, we couldn't find a better word.  It's probably an elegant combi-word in German.
From what I remember searching it last night sober, it was actually not necessarily a thing?  A lot of people probably went directly from apprenticeship to forging their masterwork.

Anyway, as matter of fact as possible...
Our haven was bombed by some Ventrue we hadn't met (my new character) who naturally then consented to mindwipe by her Master.  During daylight, which is tough for vampires who have forgotten their human lives.

Our Gangrel was in our haven at the time.  Despite her extraordinarily low humanity, she managed to clumsily and groggily crawl away from the collapsing floor into the shelter of an enclosed stairwell.  The monster lives.

My new Ventrue character then watched with disgust as our Ventrue [Malkavian scum] was briefed by her Master.  Her high composure kept her from speaking out of turn, but she was even more terse than usual when she had to exchange pleasantries.

Ms. Amanda has not paid her Invictus dues, the crazy bitch.  It was troubling to watch her be tortured for 15 minutes until her main personality surfaced...  But only slightly.  There but for the Master's grace goes Eleanor. 

Malkavia:  Not even once.

Yeah I don't know why it is about mic sessions but where by text I give a lot of description...

By voice I skip a lot of it... To admit a LOT of it is nervousness and I end up skipping details I wrote long in advance.

3-4 years ago I only knew text RP.  But I've adjusted to voice.  Recently I tried to show a friend NWoD and was stymied because I couldn't convey via text like I used to.  It felt awkward, just as voice chat felt incredibly awkward at first.
I think I prefer text, honestly.  I don't do voices well at all.  But a good group has much suspension of disbelief, which makes it okay.  I'd rather be typing prose, but only barely.