https://forums.obsidianportal.com/categories/general-discussion/p31/feed.rss Tue, 15 Sep 2026 17:22:42 +0000 General Discussion Discussions on Obsidian Portal Community Forums en-CA https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2306/what-s-on-your-dm-screen Thu, 29 Dec 2011 01:14:51 +0000 zalambar 2306@/discussions
I'm focused on D&D 4e material but I think the set of data I work with is probably similar to what DMs of other game systems rely on. So far my list consists of:

h2. In combat

h3. General actions

* Easy/moderate/hard DC values per level. Handy for spur of the moment skill checks but I'll probably need to customize it to the party to reflect their trained skills. (DMG page 42)
* Low/medium/high damage values per level. What sort of damage should an improvised attack or trap do at this level?
* Common attack modifiers. (PHB page 279)
* Cost of actions in combat. Is dropping prone free or a minor? (PHB page 289)
* Stealth rules. I seem unable to remember these consistently. (PHB2 page 277)

h3. Environment and terrain

* Suggested DC values for breaking common items. (PHB page 262)
* Defenses and HP for common objects. My players apparently like to break stuff. (DMG page 65)
* Suggested DC values for skill checks to traverse challenging terrain. (DMG page 61)

h3. Skill challenges

* Successes/failures and different difficulty levels
* Suggested easy/medium/hard DC values. Given the state of 4e skill challenges I'll probably have to completely replace this with something tailored to the party.

h3. Exploration

* Perception check DC values to hear characters or detect hidden items. (DMG page 37)
* Links to NPC name and character trait lists to generate them on the fly.
* Links to lists of random loot and flavor items.

h2. Non-combat game sessions

h3. Civilization

* Settlement characteristics. How are different settlements organized? What goods and services can players expect to find? (DMG page 153)

h3. Travel

* Overland and mount/vehicle travel speeds. (PHB page 261)
* Links to the wiki pages of my campaign's major locations.

h2. Planning encounters

* Encounter XP budgets (DMG page 56 & 57)
* Treasure parcels (DMG page 126)
* Links to my favorite monsters and NPCs for the campaign.

What's on your screen?]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/1314/achievements-in-dnd Thu, 06 May 2010 04:04:01 +0000 gaaran 1314@/discussions
Edit: Here's where I saw some ideas "http://www.loremaster.org/general-topics/1664-achievements-d-d.html":http://www.loremaster.org/general-topics/1664-achievements-d-d.html and "this":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/sanctum-of-the-makers campaign was the first place I saw the idea (much different implementation, but similar concept).]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2229/star-wars-the-old-republic-obsidian-portal-guild Tue, 15 Nov 2011 01:14:03 +0000 Duskreign 2229@/discussions
Thoughts?

"Duskreign":http://www.obsidianportal.com/profile/Duskreign (all-around swell fella)
"Wyrmshadow:The Duskreign Prophecy":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/duskreignprophecy (check out my latest campaign and let me know what you think!)
"Wyrmshadow Renovation Project":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/wyrmshadow-renovation-project (A testbed for a future project to drastically renovate my Wyrmshadow Campaign Setting wiki)
"Wyrmshadow Campaign Setting":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/wyrmshadow (October 2010 Campaign of the Month and 2010 Featured Campaign of the Year)
"Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/star-wars-knights-of-the-old-republic (an alternate version of the events of Knights of the Old Republic)
"The System":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/system (a hurry-up game I devised to play when there's nothing else going on)]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2077/what-level-should-npc-s-be-in-town Sun, 14 Aug 2011 03:53:34 +0000 KenSee 2077@/discussions
Some details I can provide: I will be using the Pathfinder system. The town is a pretty large port town. PC Classes will range the gamut as I will have probably 8+ players.

Sorry if that is not enough information. If you need more please ask. I am still a pretty inexperienced DM and appreciate any help yall can give! Thanks!]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2423/the-5-by-5-method Wed, 22 Feb 2012 01:54:01 +0000 wbcundiff 2423@/discussions Thanks.

-Bill

edit: here's a link if you haven't heard of it. http://critical-hits.com/2011/03/04/the-5x5-method-compendium/]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2369/combat-encounter-brainstorm-battle-at-the-inn Thu, 26 Jan 2012 00:11:28 +0000 Turncoat 2369@/discussions
My question for the forum is what kind of elements can I introduce into the fight in order to make it a truly memorable encounter? I'll consider any and all ideas put forth, so please don't limit yourselves!]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2368/sandbox-vs-canned Wed, 25 Jan 2012 02:51:20 +0000 Baalshamon 2368@/discussions
I personally can't stand running canned adventures though I do enjoy playing in one from time to time. "My current campaign":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/star-trek-late-night is a massive sandbox. The players make thier own destiny and choose the path they will take. I have a preset timeline that I use to have events ongoing in the background. The players actions may intersect with the timeline or may run paralel to it. I also utilize a game changing "drama deck":http://bit.ly/uL5Jor that allows the players to act like a producer for the movie and make changed to the script. These cards can have a major and unexpected inpact on a scene. This requires me to react and adjust quickly on the fly. I never know what to expect from the players from week to week so the adventures are often just as new to me as they are to the players. I know this style of play is chaotic, and requires alot of work on my part, but I love it and it is the style of play my team is use to.


-Steve
"Star Trek Late Night":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/star-trek-late-night
"Duskreign's CotM December 2011":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/wyrmshadow/wikis/122011
"CotM January 2012":http://blog.obsidianportal.com/star-trek-late-night-januarys-cotm/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=star-trek-late-night-januarys-cotm]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2412/a-chat-with-ben-robbins Wed, 15 Feb 2012 21:51:52 +0000 TheMazeController 2412@/discussions
A 15 min "call with Ben Robbins":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/bad-wrong-fun/wikis/news - Author of Microscope.

Thanks to KillerVP's help I have finally figured out a way to get around the sound issues I have been having it looks like. With that being said I will finally get some more updates up after tonights game event with my "GCBN":https://muleabides.wordpress.com/2012/01/18/games-that-cant-be-named/ series of events that I am running.

I know I have been a bad lazy portaler between all the crap I have going on IRL and the tech difficulties I was experiencing updates have slowed to a trickle... that should be fixed now though!

Killer and some others have mentioned they were into Microscope and I should let people know about the interview now that I have it up so there it is!]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2408/kick-ass-writer-tools Tue, 14 Feb 2012 21:02:31 +0000 DreadGazebo 2408@/discussions
* "*Rory's Story Cubes*":http://www.storycubes.com/ - Fun for plot generation, side quests, or just making up crazy stories with your friends. Also great for those of us who have little ones. You can find them at retail places like Target, Walmart, etc as well as in the usual online places
* "*Writer's Dice*":http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/danielsolis/writers-dice-roll-over-writers-block - Great utility, seems so simple, yet so effective. The Kickstarter is over but you can still grab them "on etsy":http://www.etsy.com/shop/SmartPlayGames for about 5$ each. These also work great when rolled in tandem with the above mentioned story cubes.
* "*Story Forge Cards*":http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/bjwest/story-forge-brainstorming-cards-for-storytellers - A product Micah and I just discussed on "Haste":http://hastepodcast.com/ is still yet to be funded via Kickstarter, but is looking to be well on its way to coming to fruition. It seems like a really intricate way to generate characters and a lot more, there's a bunch more info on "their website":http://www.storyforgecards.com/ too. Definitely worth checking out.

I suppose that's all for now, just wanted to drop in and share some writer love. Coincidence that I'm doing this on Valentines day? Maybe, maybe not. Have you guys/gals used any of these personally? I own the story cubes and love them to death! Let me know, I really love stuff like this and have more often than not lately been finding myself in writers block mode.]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2406/nation-states Mon, 13 Feb 2012 16:50:49 +0000 Baalshamon 2406@/discussions https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2363/gencon-indy Tue, 24 Jan 2012 17:45:34 +0000 Baalshamon 2363@/discussions

-Steve
"Star Trek Late Night":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/star-trek-late-night
"Duskreign's CotM December 2011":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/wyrmshadow/wikis/122011
"CotM January 2012":http://blog.obsidianportal.com/star-trek-late-night-januarys-cotm/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=star-trek-late-night-januarys-cotm]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2064/gah-textile Thu, 04 Aug 2011 17:00:32 +0000 super_rats 2064@/discussions https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2394/twitter Thu, 09 Feb 2012 02:44:49 +0000 Baalshamon 2394@/discussions
"Click here to find me on twitter":https://twitter.com/#!/stevewollett]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2398/best-way-to-learn-a-new-game Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:32:56 +0000 EricAusley 2398@/discussions
Mark (the cast member who's topic choice this is) says that for him it is strictly character generation. It is through that that he learns the basis of the rules and then he fills in the nuances from there.

Anyone have any other ways?

I am posting this with the intention of quoting those who participate on an upcoming episode. If you do not want to have your name or online handle used, please say so.]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2372/site-character-sheets Fri, 27 Jan 2012 20:20:19 +0000 Ghaleonausa 2372@/discussions https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2386/campaign-advice-information-sharing-thread Thu, 02 Feb 2012 20:35:08 +0000 Sorwen 2386@/discussions
For instance my best campaigns almost seem to build themselves. They just kind of snowball down hill(in a good way) from there. My current campaign 3.5 I started with a very basic that my current group has never had the opportunity to play anything "exotic" really. I mean there has been a few strange things that have happened and once I started as a Dhampir, but nothing really centered around playing Monsters, strange combinations, or anything like that. Once they said they were interested I started building it. Why monsters? How and why would they be the "heroes" of a campaign.

Another part of this that is really important for me creatively is the saying "A picture is worth a thousand words". For me that can often be quite literal. I have several side quests for the players that were either totally built or fleshed out simply by a single picture. A lone castle scene, strange character designs, monster pictures, etc. are really helpful. "Why is the castle there" or perhaps "Why is the castle in ruins and how did it get damaged in that way'? "Who is that character"? "Why are they wearing armor that looks like that?" "Why is she licking blood off her hand?" "Why is that dragon doing that?" "Is it being attacked for its hoard we can't see or is it attacking that person for some reason?" "What is that thing and why is it there?"

This current campaign is more full of those types of thing, more so than any before it. I have to admit I might have gotten out of hand, because I doubt we will get to everything that is there for the party to do. Still it has been fun and I might be able to use the idea again....Just had another idea I need to write down...Any way I've been really stuck on how to flesh out on of the side quests that could actually be really interesting. I had the monsters as I had gotten the idea when researching templates and level adjustments. My problem was how do I make meeting them interesting rather than just randomly throwing them at the party. I was really stumped. Then I saw a picture for a character design. The armor was really strange, but I thought the picture was cool. I have NPCs that are built for coming in and out of the story to help it along. It was perfect. It was like someone had read my mind before I even knew to think that thought. That was the NPC. I knew exactly how to create that situation which leads perfectly to how to introduce those monsters.

Sorry this has gotten a little long. The point of the thread is that I hope my way might help someone else who is stuck and hopefully someone will post something that will help me in the future as well. I mean, really mention anything. Is it simply an organizational idea(put all your NPCs in a binder), write random scenes on a piece of paper and pull them blindly from a hat, or always eat tacos before a session? What tidbit would you like to share?

"Return to the Time of Troubles":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/return-to-the-time-of-troubles]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2289/holiday-gaming Sun, 18 Dec 2011 11:55:05 +0000 AnthonyDluzak 2289@/discussions
Our game is tomorrow, and I am planning on running a nice little holiday themed game... In my last adventure, the PC's were stranded in the tropics. They managed to find their way home to England via a teleportal (the way they got there to begin with, but they didn't know how to open it)... It is April in England, when they returned they found it to be snowing! They checked to make sure that there was no strange time lapse, and there was not. The game session ended there.... and now, I'm set up to run a holiday game in April!! Of course, its not snowing just so I can run a holiday game -- it just happened to work out that way with the timing.

Here's the script I wrote out for the game:

You leave the smoky warmth of the Shark and Anchor and walk into the streets of Ramsgate. This is a bustling and busy city off the coast of the English Channel. The city is surrounded by several great walls that rise up higher and higher like a step, the tallest outer wall being around 80]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2373/narrated-adventure-logs Sat, 28 Jan 2012 04:03:10 +0000 TheMazeController 2373@/discussions
I would like to call your attention to the Narrated Adventure logs that BWF will feature. I worked hard on getting the stuff set up and our voice actor buddy StephanosRex deserves the credit for being awesome and putting up with my antics. Credit to my crazy players for coming up with a cool campaign setting all in one play session and good support for the feature play logs. I am sure it will only get more awesome as we work together to bring the game world to life more.

In case you're wondering what the hell I am blathering about ... have a look for yourself at our "Adventure Logs":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/bad-wrong-fun/adventure-log/dawn-of-worlds-first-age update complete with the aforementioned Narration - (Note it has 3 parts.).

I am a terrible Portal-er and am still a week behind so there will be another narrated Adventure Log going up hopefully this weekend and then we will settle into our proper pace of one a week a week behind actual play.]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2387/the-tronum-dreeba Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:31:04 +0000 TheMazeController 2387@/discussions
I am going to chronicle my progress mainly since I feel like it. lol

"Rough Draft":http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff300/A-G-A/TonumDreebaWip-1.png

"Brushes made and Prelim Terrain laid out":http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff300/A-G-A/TonumDreebaWip.png

"Labels / Text":http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff300/A-G-A/TonumDreebaWipText.png

"Coloring and effects":http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff300/A-G-A/TonumDreebaWipND.png

"Detail work / Hexing it out for GM use":http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff300/A-G-A/TonumDreebaWipHex.png

Not so bad I think - now that I have tried this technique I will be much better at it on subsequent maps. I am pleased with my Escarpment work ... the mountains need more detail I will do better next time. Trees turned out ok - not great but ok ... same thing I will add a scrub brush and 2 different tree brushes next time - one deciduous one evergreen.

The swamp is a little hard to spot near the ruins of old Urcit at the north of the lake ... I need to think on how to improve there.

I am not pleased at all with my buildings ... must get better there.

Anyhow here is a really brief overview of the Map -

The intent is to lay out the city of Urcit and the outlying towns known as the Tronum Dreeba - when my players did the world building session (if you have been following along) one player decided to make an "evil god" (Jury is still out on whether he was evil or not). I happily went along with this and then to make for even more GM fodder, the evil god attacked my "good" god sealing away his consort in Ice after the escarpment was raised. (Technically I attacked first but I had to slow him down from making shadowlands all over the map) - This all lead to a crusade after the races showed up.

The town of old Urcit was occupied and the crusade liberated it but since I need places for my players to explore I decided that part of the liberation involved destroying a damn to the south where the lake starts which lead to the destruction of Old Urcit. Ruins and Swamps - how can you go wrong?

The outlying towns are a mix of farming / martial communities I think - with the ones being near the Mts more of fortified cities.

Now that I have hexed the map out I am going to start making interesting areas. The map is supposed to be 300 mi square. with one hex being 20 mi. I know the North south is off by one hex but if you dont like it make your own damn map lol.

Now I am soliciting suggestions - what to place where? The escarpment will have caves underneath, and the swamp and ruins I have plans for - as well as some of the Mts. The hills near the escarpment will be Barrows / due to old battles of the crusade being fought there. and the Shadowlands are easy.

I have plenty of hexes to fill though so if anyone has something interesting I'd love to hear it. Also critiques of the map are welcome. The players wont see the hexed version they only get the watercolor layer.]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2381/ddxp-haste Wed, 01 Feb 2012 07:48:06 +0000 GamingMegaverse 2381@/discussions killervp
"A God...Rebuilt":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/a-god-rebuilt
"Duskreign's First Ever COTM":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/wyrmshadow/wiki_pages/112011]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2351/paths-of-destiny-campaign-now-live Wed, 18 Jan 2012 06:33:07 +0000 KenSee 2351@/discussions
Character logs to follow soon.

-Ken See
"Paths of Destiny":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/paths-of-destiny-ken]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2371/copy-character Fri, 27 Jan 2012 16:26:59 +0000 Sorwen 2371@/discussions

"Return to the Time of Troubles":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/return-to-the-time-of-troubles]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2376/now-with-more-blog Sun, 29 Jan 2012 21:27:26 +0000 Black_Vulmea 2376@/discussions
Mike aka Black Vulmea
"_Le Ballet de l'Acier_":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/le-ballet-de-l-acier - swashbuckling adventures in the age of the Three Musketeers and Captain Alatriste
Featured Campaign of the Month - August 2011]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/1844/dragon-lore-or-dragon-bore Sun, 20 Mar 2011 09:30:42 +0000 twiggyleaf 1844@/discussions
However, they can be quite elaborate to design. It's not just "look it up in the monster manual!" There are so many types and then each age group gives it differing characteristics. If you're lucky, you can use the EXAMPLE in the Monster Manual, but more often than not, you will have to do a lot more work....

......unless there is already one waiting for you in the "Sample Dragons":http://d20npcs.wikia.com/wiki/Sample_Dragons link. This is a useful WIKI link with some sample dragons already pre-rolled, classified by type and age group. I have found it extremely useful.

Hey, maybe you are the type of person that just likes designing dragons for fun. If so, why don't you upload your "homebrews" into the WIKI pages where there are plenty of empty slots, thus further helping other gamers looking for such creatures.

The site is d20 based, so it should be more or less usable for most fantasy based RPGs.

Happy Hunting.
twigs!]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2354/favorite-gm-game-systems Thu, 19 Jan 2012 05:34:28 +0000 HurstGM 2354@/discussions Me personally?
I like horror, survival, and more modern games
As far as systems I like well to be bias mine and palladium if its hacked up a bit
I tried 4e and i could not stand it.]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2370/gear Fri, 27 Jan 2012 02:33:51 +0000 Baalshamon 2370@/discussions
I am looking for anything except weapons, armor, vehicles, and clothing.]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2357/favrorite-campaigns-and-why Sun, 22 Jan 2012 00:42:07 +0000 Baalshamon 2357@/discussions
Since I am starting this I will post my top three to get things going.

The Campaign I find the most fun is "Avatar - Conquest of the Imperial Order":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/avatar_adventures because of its subject matter, beautiful graphics, and fabulous stories.

The Campaign that inspires me the most is "A God Rebuilt":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/a-god-rebuilt because of its great story line and the feel that I have entered into a true saga of epic proportions when I read the journal entries. A future campaign of the month for certain, it is only a matter of time.

The Campaign that I envy the most is "La Ballet de L'Acier":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/le-ballet-de-l-acier because of the awesomeness of it all. I have run and played swashbuckling games but this one leaves me breathless. I can only hope that someday I get to play 7th Sea (My personal preference for games of this nature) with a group as dedicated as this one.

Well there it is, now its your turn.]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2358/victoriana-actual-play-podcast Sun, 22 Jan 2012 05:31:59 +0000 EricAusley 2358@/discussions https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2360/reputation Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:17:12 +0000 Baalshamon 2360@/discussions
In my games I always use a reputation system of one sort or another. You cant walk around killing people by shooting them in the back without it becoming common knowledge that you are a backstabbing coward. The same goes for talk in a public place. You never know who is listening and this too can lead to the creation of reputation or failure of plans.

Who else gives their characters reputation and how is it playing out in your campaigns?

Steve
"Star Trek Late Night":http://tinyurl.com/73htn5x]]> https://forums.obsidianportal.com/discussion/2347/most-popular Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:37:50 +0000 Baalshamon 2347@/discussions
For example The Nemedian Chronicles has 99 fans but is listed higher than Tales of Darkmoon Vale which has 104 fans.

This pattern is repeated many times.

Does anyone know why this is?]]>