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[Draignean]

Been looking over various Natural Attack builds, and now I'm wondering. Are there actually any creatures out there that are not proficient with Natural Weapons? I've seen proficiency with Natural Attacks mentioned more than a few times in Pathfinder, so potentially it could happen. Yes, I know I'm hunting for something that doesn't exist. Not the first time.

I'm still looking for the creature with DR/Gold mentioned in the Rare-Metal Infusion for the Geokinetist.

As I recall, in 3.5 D&D, non-war horses get some malus to attacking with their teeth and hooves as compared to war horses. I don't actually recall if that's because they're not considered proficient or not.

[Criptfeind]

In 3.5 non war horses are worse with their kicks because it counts as a secondary natural attack for them, and they have no primary natural attack at all. I don't know how common it is to have secondary but no primary natural weapons, afaik it's pretty dang rare, maybe even unique? This isn't quite the same as being non proficient... Anyway, as for not being proficient with a natural weapon... I don't think that's something that could happen in 3.5... Maybe in pathfinder which I know nothing about is different? Like, technically humanoids are not explicitly proficient with natural weapons (unlike all the other various hd which are either proficient with their natural weapons explicitly or just with all weapons that they have.) So I guess arguably the druid or barbarian transforming into a bear might take a non proficiency penalty to his claw swipes. I'd say that's kinda a silly ruling to make but I can't find anything that makes it incorrect (although there's probably an errata out there somewhere or something.) Of course, who knows in the wide world of splat books it's perfectly conceivable that somewhere out there is something that isn't proficient with natural weapons because of some snowflake special ability.

[Rolan7]

ninja'd
Huh yeah, it's a little weird.
http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/horse.htm
Normal horses have two hoof attacks (and no bite).  But both attacks are treated as secondary, they have no primary attack.  That means a -5, and their strength bonus to *damage* is halved.  Even for their standard-action attack (1 hoof).

Warhorse's 2 hoof attacks are primary, and they get a secondary bite (-5).

For the curious, the reason a light horse's hooves are -2 total is:
2 from Base Attack Bonus
+2 from strength
-5 for being secondary
-1 due to being large

On a side note, we're making Shadowrun 5th edition characters.  Looks like we'll have a rigger, a decker, and an adept (me).
Basically a craven drone operator (with katana-drones), combat-hacker (like in E.Y.E but better, hack guns and implants over wifi), and a monk with a gun and astral vision.
This is our first time, including the GM, pretty excited!  Advice welcome (:

[Criptfeind]

I guess try to get the rules you're going to use set straight before you play, especially for hacking and drones. Shadowrun 5E rules are basically an incomplete clusterfuck when it comes to the more complex parts of the system. The game I played in fell apart because we realized that the rules were basically just a giant semi pointless morass and we didn't want to bother to homerule our way out of them. I personally found the magic rules frustrating but playable with only some homeruling, although I didn't actually bother to learn how guns worked since I just went with magic missiles which probably helped me out. (I believe shooting someone with magic is about the most straightforward thing you can do in the system.)

Also combat was surprisingly nonlethal, although I guess your mileage may vary depending on how tough your characters are and how your gm focuses his fire, but we found that even with two groups of people spraying each other down with high power rifles and machine guns people only rarely got real injuries. So don't worry too much about hurting the opposition when you snipe them in the head.

Edit: Also the games not necessarily balanced for combat, but that's probably okay if your game isn't exclusively combat focused.

[BlackFlyme]

When my group was last checking out Shadowrun 5, I ended up spending far too long trying to work out the carrying capacity of vehicles, as they are not listed, as far as I remember.

They do have rules for how much each seat of the vehicle may hold if you run out of space though.

[ShoesandHats]

I've been planning out a DnD campaign to DM for my friends. The problem is, this is my first experience playing DnD, let alone being the DM, so I'm kind of flying by the seat of my pants here. I have a map, I have a general idea of what the main goal of the campaign will be, and I have an okay idea of what the first adventure/dungeon will be like. However, the only parts of my world that I've really fleshed out are those that pertain directly to the main story and the first adventure.

I'm worried that the players will either a) feel like they're being railroaded or b) end up in a part of the world that I haven't thought about at all and have nothing to do.

Here's what I've got so far. Sorry if it sounds a little awkward, this was all written for my own reference:

Spoiler: Summary (click to show/hide)

Fyr is the sun. Fyr used to be part of a binary system with another star called Maki. Fyr’s human worshippers considered Fyr and Maki rivals. Powerful magic users created an artifact intended to drive Maki away. It succeeded, but not in the way they had hoped. Maki was furious not only at humanity’s attempts to banish it, but also at its twin’s unwillingness to stop them. Maki left, but not without taking revenge on those who angered him. Fyr’s human worshippers were warped into what are now called Orcs. This event triggered a chaotic era of struggle between the Orcs and an alliance of non-humans and humans who had never worshipped Fyr. The large human empire that had occupied the large majority of the land in Alemic fractured into a number of nations. The Orcs were driven into the desert between Alemic and Oraya, as well as past the mountains of Eralta.

Maki is still visible in the night sky as a red star. To most races, it appears about as bright as most other stars, but Orcs see it as being much brighter. They experience a sharp headache whenever they lay eyes on it, along with a surge of anger. Half-Orcs are affected by this to a degree, but not nearly as much as pure Orcs.

These events are ancient history, and although they are fairly well known among those with an adequate education in history, the creation of the artifact that triggered them is only known to a select few.

The artifact was powered partly by the magic from the River Brahm, and partly by a powerful black dragon, Leonard’s ancient ancestor. The party will (probably) encounter the artifact in its original location, the ruins it inhabits unearthed by a mining operation near the split of the river. When Leonard comes into the vicinity of the artifact (or maybe touches it?) his ancestral magic will kickstart it into action, inadvertently "waking" Maki and sending him on a direct course to Oberon, the planet of our setting.

The Order of Iryth is an order of monks that resides in the mountains/highlands surrounding High Lake Brahm. The order was originally established to serve as stewards of world knowledge, but their role grew to include the collection and curation of knowledge. They sometimes decide that knowledge is simply too dangerous or disruptive to be available to the general public. When this happens, they place evidence of this information into a pond in/around their mission. Every full moon, Iryth passes directly over High Lake Brahm, as well as over the pond. Iryth takes this information and judges its threat level herself. If she deems it dangerous as well, this knowledge is purged from the minds of everyone except those who have drunk from the pond.

Spoiler: World Map (click to show/hide)

For context, the eastern end of the largest landmass is Alemic while the western end is Oraya.

I'd really appreciate any worldbuilding input and general tips for a new DM with new players. Also, this is my first time posting on this forum in a couple years, so, uh, hi again.

[Arcvasti]

The trick is really to just go with what your players want. Some players will go off and do random things instead of chasing down plot hooks while others prefer a more DM-directed approach. The example I remember best was this mammoth story about one group and this portal to the Elemental Plane of Salt. Because salt is quite valuable, the party dropped the main plot completely to mine it and become obscenely rich. Instead of trying to usher them down the path that was planned for the campaign, the DM instead adopted new plotlines related to the party being basically in control of a magical interplaner merchant empire. While that's obviously a bit of an extreme example, putting treasure wherever the PCs decide to dig is generally a good plan. Make whatever they're trying to pursue fun and interesting. In general, keep spare encounters and NPCs on hand in case you need them. Even just a sheet with some random names and quirks on them does wonders to make the world seem bigger then it is.

[sjm9876]

With new players, I'd advise starting them off in a plot hook if at all possible. Maybe a villain kicks in the tavern door or some such. Make it big, obvious, and unavoidable. Helps to avoid the choice paralysis of "So we can do anything?"

I'd also not worry too much about the macro details. Build parts of the world as needed, or you'll end up wasting large amounts of effort as the players do something you'd never have guessed.

Try not to make goals too tied to a location. It helps to be able to move them in front of players. Railroading without actually railroading them


Don't expect a huge amount from your first session as everyone in the group is figuring out the whole rpg thing. That'll take a bit of time, after which you might notice a couple of people throw the group dynamic out of whack. Don't worry about it. It happens more or less unavoidably. That said, have fun

[Harry Baldman]

Make sure the players create characters with their own hooks in mind that you can tie into things that occur around the world, and also tie them in with each other.

[Neonivek]

The trick is really to just go with what your players want.

Yeah with new DMs there are pretty much two strategies you want to try as far as game crafting
-Player Centric Approach: Basically try to craft the game entirely around what the players want to do. Players USUALLY will like a campaign that caters to them regardless of content.
-DM centric approach: Also valid you give prospective players what the game is about so there are no surprises. This is more of a learning exercise and with the right players can be very beneficial.

You just don't want to bog yourself down too too much.

I'd also not worry too much about the macro details. Build parts of the world as needed, or you'll end up wasting large amounts of effort as the players do something you'd never have guessed.

Actually lets take this and talk about benefit of the doubt or rather positive things... As well as having a flexible plan

If you are doing your job right the players will believe you planned everything out. So don't worry too much about not always having a plan because players will just project whatever happens as a long extended plan.

AS WELL! Listen to your players closely. They make a lot of assumptions out loud based on the campaign and where it is going and here is a SUPER SECRET no one will tell you!

The players... Don't have access to your script... AND your script isn't written in stone.

Change it. Never be afraid to change the script! Especially according to how your players are tackling the campaign. You don't always need to reward them for bad ideas (As that can make them feel like their actions have no real meaning), but if they don't trust someone who you never intended to be untrustworthy... You can totally just make them a villain.

But always ALWAYS pretend like it was always the plan! That is where the magic comes from. You aren't putting on a play, you are performing a magic act!

[Jimmy]

First, great job with the map!

Second, don't forget to put a scale on that thing. I generally put about 300 miles between major sites on my map (anything from Small Town up to Metropolis), with minor hamlets and villages every 50-100 miles between that aren't represented on the world map because they're so insignificant no self respecting cartographer would include them.

Third, regarding world building and quest objectives, I ask my players to give me two things when they create their character. First is an NPC ally they know, and second is an NPC enemy they have. This backstory for their character creates reasons they might help someone or reasons their character might get in trouble. You'd be amazed how much detail some players put into their character's backstory! It can do a lot of the fleshing out work for you to have a focus for one character's objectives in their adventuring life.

Finally, I usually run about three to five potential sidequests in each location my players visit. Last major town, they could have helped clear a band of pirates from the high seas, travelled to a semi-sentient demi-plane with a slightly crazy ex-priest of Asmodeus, unravelled the plans of a group of smugglers trading in angel souls, investigated the sudden mysterious loss of contact with a lighthouse far out to sea, or helped a rich noblewoman rescue her only heir from slavery to Aboleth. The group chose to do none of them.

So if I can give you any advice as a fellow sandbox DM, it's to have potential material prepped but not spend too much time fleshing it out until the players actually commit to something. Currently they've returned to their ruined castle stronghold that they're rebuilding in preparation to go rescue three NPC relatives from the southern theocratic nation of slavers. Of course, they haven't factored in that the local Alchemist's Guild has a bounty on their head for assisting a rogue alchemist who looted their guild treasury. I've got plans for them to get a visit by several strong-arms in the near future now that they're back at home. They also pissed off an efreeti by denying him slaves to take home after freeing him from a summoner's circle, and this efreeti might well make a return appearance at a rather inopportune moment. Keep track of times your players fuck up, and let it come back to bite them in the ass later.

[highmax28]

You're gonna wanna listen to "Because I Got High" while reading this. That was he theme of my last session. Why? I'm gonna tell you

My party is playing Curse of Strahd and they're in Vallaki (I spelled that wrong I think but I don't care right now, it's irrelevant). They noticed they're being followed by a spy (those who know the campaign know who I'm talking about) and they're trying to find the Saint's bones. They tell the paladin to go distract him. Well, the paladin's player is known to do some ridiculous shit, such as fighting an Orc warchief one on one at level 1 AND WINNING (they were supposed to leave, being they were all mostly dead).

Anyway, someone made a joke saying he should use thunderous smite on something and throw it. No, what this guy does is he goes over behind a house near the spy, starts to remove some of the lower parts of her armor (it's a male playing a female character) and drops her trousers and begins to take a shit in public. Oh no, it doesn't stop here. He specifies that as it's coming out, he casts thundering smite on his feces as it's coming out and, I know as a DM, I shouldn't have allowed it, but if a monkey can throw poop as a method of self defence, why wouldn't it count as a weapon? So he does his thing and it hits the ground. It leaves a small crater and EVERYONE in town hears it as a loud crack of thunder is heard. Just as it hits the ground, someone saw her, went to go report it and then got scared and ran off.

The spy went to go check it out, succeeding in the distraction, and the paladin had to deal with not having anything to wipe with.

Then, the next session comes by (because that was the end of the previous session) and the Druid, who is played by my girlfriend, decided she wanted to have the equivalent of marijuana in my world and I just threw out a random name, and she said she had it (and I don't know when I agreed to it but I'm rolling with it). She gets high and then tries to find the wereravens by turning into a parrot. She fumbles around, and because she isn't high enough level, she just kind of hobbles about trying to fly but she can't, and a wereraven happens to pick her up and start to care for her. She then goes "like... SQWAK man..." In a stoner voice and then the wereraven, knowing she's a Druid, gives her to the paladin.

She turns back into normal form and then the paladin grabs her joint and, being a Phoenix sorcerer, she burns it. I checked the paladin's con score and upon rolling, she fumbled and got high. She then stumbled into the town and blacked out.

The morning comes and the paladin wakes up in the stocks. Why they're still a paladin was because, despite the public intoxication, the paladin did none of that to her own will; it was an accident.

So the Druid and the artificer find him while the wizard chills at the bar knowing this is gonna be a shitshow. the Druid says she'll talk to the baron about releasing him, but the artificer, who's a pirate, just wanders off to go set him free. Well, the artificer is a gnome, and she's short and light for one too, and she's caught trying to free him and thrown on the stocks herself. Unfortunately, they aren't gnome sized and Izek is known to be kind of an idiot, so she can freely move her hands and deal with her situation. She pours alchemist acid on the lock and breaks free, and then a child, like in Projared's video, spots them and says she's trying to Escape. They see the lock and a broken vial of acid, and they go to bring her to th baron's house (I was aiming for the closet that they had in there) and then the paladin, with an 18 to strength and settin himself on fire, forces the lock open and thinks the gnome is gonna die, so he commands the one carrying her to drop her and she high tails it out, and then he compelled duels Izek to get him to stop chasing her and says "I will not fight you".

Izek uses his horn to rally the town Militia and suddenly, he's surrounded. Her player says "I tell them while putting my hands up and say "this was all a complete misunderstanding!" He rolls, and in my head, even if he rolled high, he won't succee- NAT 20.

He goes and does that and the Druid, happening to be right on time, flashes a paper stating the release of the paladin. Izek doesn't like it, but he has to agree, and the paladin goes free. HOWEVER, the artificer broke property, and after the paladin pays for it, gets a day in the stocks for upsetting the populace.

So after that goes on, the paladin, still upset at the Druid, goes up to her while she's trying to work for the inn as a sexy barmaid and uses divine favor (or something like that) and proceeds to smack her ass as revenge for getting him high. While I know it's her own damn fault, I let it happen, she calls for help, and wereravens take the paladin outside, beat the shit out of him, and leave him outside. Oh, and did I mention the ass slapping also made him lose his paladin powers?

Next day happens and it's the festival of the blazing sun, and the whole thing happens and then as the guy is being dragged, the former paladin speaks out and says that's over excessive. Baron calls him out for being a pardoned criminal. She then says they did more good for the village and that he should be grateful... But the only things they did was on their own and no one talked about it, which was the vampires in the coffin maker's shop and returning he bones. He mentioned the bones and the wizard, knowing shit was going to go down, said she's on her own (because the bones are to be kept secret). So for speaking out, the baron orders him to be dragged as well, but he sets the rope on fire with the Phoenix powers, and releases the other man as well AND lighting the baron's rear end on fire.

The baron then says they cannot let someone this dangerous to them live, and they take him to the gallows. The paladin, restrained and doused by fire, prays as she is taken to what may be her final stop.

Lucky her, a second scripted event takes place and the tiger incident happens. The paladin has reduce cast on him by the wizard and told to run while everyone else starts to scatter. The artificer runs to the inn to grab everyone's belongings because she has a bag of holding, Rictavio is dealing with the tiger, and Izek begins chasing the tiny paladin but loses her after the Druid cast entangle on him (which she said was aimed for the tiger, but the tiger is too big (which he was since the wizard, letting the paladin get through t, cast enlarge on the tiger (while I'm not supposed to allow it, it made for an interesting situation, so I allowed it)).

The party then causes more chaos, as the Druid begins casting thunder wave outside of town, making the people think they're under attack, and Izek is still entangled while Rictavio gathers the party on his cart, hides them inside with the tiger, and flees.

It is at this point that you realized most of these events happened

Because she got high
because she got high
because she got high

[FallacyofUrist]

@ShoesandHats: Here in Bay 12, often enough we do world building with a forum game where the players work on designing the world. If sufficiently structured, masterpieces can be wrought.

[Jimmy]

I gotta say, after level 10 the prep work for a session is really picking up!

I've built my Alchemist Guild encounter yesterday, and it's shaping up to be a nasty one.

To start, I took a Yamabushi Tengu and gave him 8 levels of Samurai Katana Duelist. In character he's the group's hired strongarm, a ronin warrior that's been purchased by the guild for cash. Out of character he's there to deliver a bunch of loot to the group, mainly a swag new katana for the group's samurai who's been letting himself get short-changed a lot when the loot gets split.

Next we've got an Alchemical Golem, which is both a distraction to let the four alchemists buff before their fight as well as a way to offset the big haul of loot from the first encounter with a creature that doesn't drop any treasure.

Finally we've got four alchemists, two of which are 8th level Beastmorph Vivisectionist Alchemists, the other two 8th level Scout Underground Chemist Unchained Rogues.

I'm particularly proud of these two combinations, since they both deal full Sneak Attack damage. The Alchemists buff out to be Large size with AC 34 and get two Trip attempts at CMB +22 and 4 natural attacks at +11 each full attack. The Unchained Rogues only get a single attack per round, but it's a +13 ranged touch splash weapon that deals 6d6+2 and 1 Strength or Dexterity damage per hit.

All four only have about 50 hp each, so they're not too difficult to kill. But they'll definitely bring a nasty amount of pain on the group and reinforce that the Alchemist's Guild is both definitely the local equivalent of a Thieves Guild, and that they are not to be trifled with.

[RazielReaver]

So uh....how much exactly does 5e cut out from character options ?