The Pink Dice Chronicles

I wrote a similar article to this on Pathfinder, and though this is a pretty evil topic, it has been of use to a lot of folks out there.  So, now, I think, is the time to start a similar article for D&D 5e.  This will be a living document to be updated with suggestions and more information as I find better methods. In general, 5e is a lot more challenging for a GM, because the classes are reasonably balanced and because the game mechanics don't have a lot of scale over the 20 levels. Here's a general list of things to increase the difficulty for the party: Increase the number of foes and the CR (ignore the book CR system if it isn't offering a challenge) Spells against the PCs low saves.  A high level sleep spell, for example, could take out a party with no elves. Drag out the opportunity for the long rest.  After 2 short rests, the 3rd battle of the day is tough. Hit the most vulnerable PC first. It almost always forces another teammate to take an acti...

Torin, I hope this letter finds you well, but soon I shall be able to see for myself.  We have wrapped up this nasty business of taking down the goblin war chief and the dark woman and her minions that attacked Standpoint.  I was able to gather up many artifacts which I will turn over to you promptly.  After you see the bounty, I am sure you will choose to send another person down here to help me study this place. On a slightly stranger note, this ragtag band of folks I have been working with, including myself (Ha!) inherited the local glass factory.  The woman whose it was could not bear to run it after all the misery of her father and brother dying there, and she having been held there.  We have begun preparations to convert it over to produce magical goods.  We will be looking for an alchemist, enchanter, smithy, and guards when we arrive in Magnimar. I guess this delving into ancient tombs, danger be damned, is quite my style, ...

There is a lot of discussion that Eldritch Knight in 5e is suboptimal when compared to battlemaster fighter / wizard multiclass builds.  There is also discussion that war caster is a feat tax since divine casters can use their shield as a holy symbol for casting. I think the simplest fix is to interpret war caster with a special case for touch spells.  When casting a touch spell with a weapon in a hand using war caster, the caster can make their melee spell attack using their weapon attack and add weapon damage to the spell effect.  So for example, shocking grasp would grant a single weapon attack with a bonus 1d8 lightning damage. Is this overpowered?  I don't think so.  The feat comes at level 4 or later.  The attack only gains a significant bonus if the weapon is magic.  Compare this to the rogue's sneak attack at a bonus of 1d6 for no feat cost at level 1. The following spells could work with this combo (touch spell, no material component, offen...

Torin, I am sorry to send word that I haven't gotten to the old lighthouse yet.  However, I was able to make it into some old ruins below the old glass factory.  We found evidence of a greater mystery, including a reference to a powerful being Malfeshnekor.  I found a couple of artifacts of Uz to bring back with me.  I fear they are too valuable and dark to send by courier. We have undercovered a terrible plan to destroy the town, sacrifice various beings, and do who knows what.  We saved a girl -- a beautiful elf!  She has sent us on another mission. Today we embarked to thistletop to fight goblins and perhaps slay the evil creature behind the plans.  We ran into all sorts of creatures and goblins and their minions.  There were even some mercenaries. The best news this week, is that I have finally gotten the hang of some of the spells I've been studying.  In combat, I'm able to cast them off the top of my head, which has ...

So Sunday nights has me playing D&D 5e now.  Oddly enough I am playing through a version of Rise of the Runelords adapted to D&D 5e.  This is my third time through... maybe I'll finally make it to the end. My new character is an Elf Fighter (soon to be Eldritch Knight) with a Sage background.  He is a researcher from Magnimar who has been sent to Standpoint to investigate the ancient ruins and solve an ancient mystery (TBD). Llarm Blacksword never turns down a gold piece or a chance to ask for one.  He never turns down a tomb or a catacomb or an ancient ruin to be investigated.  He loves a mystery.  He has a tendency to talk a bit much in explaining things and often blurts out things without thinking.  His rapier makes a whoosh as it cuts through the air. The party consists of a gnome druid, a human noble paladin, and an elven ranger. Llarm reports back to his group in Magnimar through letters, which I'll be sharing on here. ...

Boo, the miniature Giant space hamster. Seen  @ mikemearls

Way back when, I posted a brief article about Pathfinder without ACP .  Now that D&D 5th Edition has come out, I figured it was time to take a detailed look at how they handled ACP and see if my gripe about ACP had been fixed. Wearing armor in 5E basically requires proficiency or you take disadvantage on just about everything and you can't cast spells.  They have scaled the AC from the armor to include DEX for light armors, a limited DEX for medium, and no DEX for heavy armors.  In addition, certain armors (heavy, some medium, one light) give disadvantage on stealth. HOWEVER, there appears to be no more penalties for other skills by wearing armor.  Hurrah!  ACP is gone, except for stealth. These kinds of attention to detail in the mechanics make me think that 5E really has a chance of being the system of choice in the future.

I downloaded the D&D 5e Basic Rules today and skimmed the 110 pages of content.  This is really my first look, since I didn't participate in the play tests with the 175,000 D&D fans (mentioned right up front in the Basic Rules).  I admit that I mostly skipped over the details of races and classes.  I fall strictly under the category of old edition lover, with my favorite versions being 3.5 and earlier.  I currently GM Pathfinder.  4th Edition and the related atrocities committed against Forgotten Realms in the the Spell Plague angered me as a player and I refused to participate in 4th Edition. Overall, my general impression of 5th Edition Basic Rules is positive.  The rules have greatly simplified a number of things, mirroring one of the strengths of Pathfinder and taking it further.  The description of many aspects of the game are straightforward and allow multiple interpretations of play to be used.  The character sheets are clean and...

Mike Mearls released another tidbit on D&D 5e , this time supposedly answering some questions on D&D 5e.  Let me summarize some major points: Basic D&D 5e won't be suitable for a basis for sharing material (adventures, etc). DMG will be the book that explains the rules and how to generate your own stuff. The licensing looks like it won't be addressed until 2015. The comments on this announcement are worth a read, but basically can be summed up in a few short categories:  big fans saying hi, I hate/love GSL/OGL, I trust/don't trust WotC to get it right.  Clearly Pathfinder has been screwing with WotC's business model and the fans now have different expectations that before. It is good to know that the expectation that Basic D&D 5e won't be suitable for creating stuff and distributing it.  It eliminates any false sense of hope that basic D&D 5e would be a basis for an SRD.  It is hopefully good news that the DMG will address how to ...

Even though I invest heavily in my gaming hobby, I still fundamentally think free is good in gaming.  I've written multiple times before about the advantages that free systems, like Pathfinder, have over pay-only systems like Shadowrun.  Free brings in players.  Free enriches the community.  Free expands my options.  Unfortunately what Mike Mearls announced with free basic D&D is only half free, so far.  This is an announcement of free "as in beer", not free as in artistic freedom.  We still don't know what licensing will be put out for D&D, either free basic on non-free D&D.  Since 3rd party publishers are really the heart and soul of the community, this is a big missing piece.  That being said, let's take a look as the free "as in beer" side of things. Basic appears to be a subset of the rules required to run the main races (dwarf, elf, halfling, human) through the main classes (fighter, wizard, rogue, cleric) to level 20. ...