Does anyone else find that many of their characters end up being variations on a theme, despite all their other differences?
Because i do a lot of improv, my stuff often features patterns of peoples and places that perpetuate patterns that prick and trickle through the mind.
But the one that every says is inevitable is my "sweet as honey pie psychotic rage monster". The theme around them being "do not mistake kind and nice and polite for weak cruel and demure".
And the reason I feel the healer thing is while I have played Rangers, Fighters, Rogues, and Wizards, the characters that live and are the most alive are always Clerics and Paladins. And I just listed about every character I have ever played, including my very first one who died that same afternoon.
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Only a DM since 1980 (3000+ Sessions) / PhD, MS, MA / Mixed, Bi, Trans, Woman / No longer welcome in the US, apparently
Wyrlde: Adventures in the Seven Cities .-=] Lore Book | Patreon | Wyrlde YT [=-. An original Setting for 5e, a whole solar system of adventure. Ongoing updates, exclusies, more. Not Talking About It / Dubbed The Oracle in the Cult of Mythology Nerds
Question: What is the most difficult part of being a Dungeon Master (assuming you have a good table of people)?
Kind of seriously, coming up with names on the fly. More seriously, I have a bad habit of stopping taking notes of my own during play, which means I have to back check with my players on things such as loot, the name I gave an NPC, etc. Luckily, my players are good note takers, but it does make the game somewhat slow to start sometimes
What has been some of the most difficult things as a player (assuming you have a good table of people and a good DM)?
Resisting the urge to metagame using my DM knowledge. I'm generally successful but I have to take a step back and remember what my character would know about this encounter, not what I know about it (for example, whether or not the knowledge of an enemy's vulnerability is PC knowledge or Player knowledge)
My characters are almost always outsiders with strange viewpoints. People who draw attention to commonly held but rarely analyzed opinions, habits, or biases, either by their own distinct lack thereof, or by a very vocal endorsement.
I just enjoy looking at regular things in irregular ways. Basically it's setting up a foil for more ordinary, usually more heroic, traits. You don't often get a lot of time with your villains in a D&D adventure. They tend to die within minutes of showing up. So they can't fulfill this purpose very effectively.
One of these days I'll get around to playing a traditional hero. Probably. Maybe.
Does anyone else find that many of their characters end up being variations on a theme, despite all their other differences?
Very much so, yes. Annoyingly so, in some ways. No matter how I set out to break the mold, the needs of the game always drag me back to the same theme. I get to be Team Dad because nobody else will step up and if I didn't do it, nothing would ever get done. Heh. But hey - at least we know the role well, ne? If everything is a variation on the theme, one gets a lot of polish on their theme.
Question: Does anyone else find that D&D makes more sense than IRL sometimes?
In 2019, I probably would have responded “Not really, though my tables often result in quite a bit of silliness.” Today? Absolutely. My table dynamics have not changed; it’s just been a hell of a past couple years.
Question: Does anyone else find that D&D makes more sense than IRL sometimes?
Yes, and not in a good way...
Seriously, if you had told me in 2019 (or even 2015 before Orange Julius Caesar got himself elected) how the last several years would have gone I probably would have laughed in your face.
At least in D&D I have control over how the world works to an extent.
Question: Does anyone else find that D&D makes more sense than IRL sometimes?
"The greatest difference between Fiction and Reality is that Fiction has to always make sense; reality doesn't." -- some gal named Toni
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Only a DM since 1980 (3000+ Sessions) / PhD, MS, MA / Mixed, Bi, Trans, Woman / No longer welcome in the US, apparently
Wyrlde: Adventures in the Seven Cities .-=] Lore Book | Patreon | Wyrlde YT [=-. An original Setting for 5e, a whole solar system of adventure. Ongoing updates, exclusies, more. Not Talking About It / Dubbed The Oracle in the Cult of Mythology Nerds
Question: Does anyone else find that D&D makes more sense than IRL sometimes?
Okay, I'm going to give away my age here, and if you aren't interested in a short story answer to that question, feel free to skip this.
During the peak of the Satanic Panic of the 1980s, I was a D&D-playing, heavy metal-loving teen. I also had a good bit of toxicity in my life, that was well out of my control. In my in-between game time, I often designed elaborate keeps and dungeons (who among us didn't, am I right?). But I filled those dungeons and keeps with the most vile, evil devils and demon lords I could dream up. The more horror and terror, the better. From the outside I'm sure I was practically the poster child for "see? D&D leads to devil worship!" But thing was, it was actually a lifeline of sorts. I knew that no matter how vile and horrid the evils I came up with, that I could make (admittedly near demi-god like) characters that could defeat that evil. I could create a horrible (in game) situation where the good guys saved the day and everything was alright in the end at a time in my life (out of game) when the good guys couldn't always save the day and some things definitely did not always end up alright. I never had any real use for devils or demons and certainly not in becoming some practitioner of evil, obviously, but those horror filled castles, keeps and dungeons were a kid being able to exert some control in a world that was often very much outside of his control.
Does anyone else find that many of their characters end up being variations on a theme, despite all their other differences?
Not really, but that may be a result of my personal play style. I will often roll up stats with no idea of what the character will end up as. Sometimes, I'll go as far as randomly rolling from a list of character folk types, classs, etc., and develop that individual from there. A human ex-soldier, fighter, with a good heart, who grew up on the mean streets of [ ], and joined the military to improve his situation has little play style in common with the self-taught, half-orc sorcerer of some obscure orc tribe, who seeks power and prestige among her eventual, magic casting peers.
Unlike some folks here, who have clearly expressed their disdain for evil characters and unheroic adventure parties, I'm happy to slip into that type of character, should the players and DM at the table deem it worthy of a session or a campaign. [I do not subject my fellow players to this kind of play, without their knowledge and approval.] I generally retire such characters early, then offer them to the DM as well-sorted NPCs, ready to go.
Too lazy again to figure out images, but I was a big Richard Scarry fan, I think since I had a childhood interest in aviation, probably A Day at the Airport was probably my favorite. I wonder if they've updated it so if the Richard Scarry characters showed up to actually spend a day at the airport, they'd be hassled by the security apparatus that was not in place at the time of original publication.
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Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
Question of the Day: What is your favorite childhood story?
Let the wild rumpus start!
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Active characters:
Carric Aquissar, elven wannabe artist in his deconstructionist period (Archfey warlock) Lan Kidogo, mapach archaeologist and treasure hunter (Knowledge cleric) Mardan Ferres, elven private investigator obsessed with that one unsolved murder (Assassin rogue) Xhekhetiel, halfling survivor of a Betrayer Gods cult (Runechild sorcerer/fighter)
Too lazy again to figure out images, but I was a big Richard Scarry fan, I think since I had a childhood interest in aviation, probably A Day at the Airport was probably my favorite. I wonder if they've updated it so if the Richard Scarry characters showed up to actually spend a day at the airport, they'd be hassled by the security apparatus that was not in place at the time of original publication.
I've just realized that every campaign I run needs a PC named Mr. Frumble.
Because i do a lot of improv, my stuff often features patterns of peoples and places that perpetuate patterns that prick and trickle through the mind.
But the one that every says is inevitable is my "sweet as honey pie psychotic rage monster". The theme around them being "do not mistake kind and nice and polite for weak cruel and demure".
And the reason I feel the healer thing is while I have played Rangers, Fighters, Rogues, and Wizards, the characters that live and are the most alive are always Clerics and Paladins. And I just listed about every character I have ever played, including my very first one who died that same afternoon.
Only a DM since 1980 (3000+ Sessions) / PhD, MS, MA / Mixed, Bi, Trans, Woman / No longer welcome in the US, apparently
Wyrlde: Adventures in the Seven Cities
.-=] Lore Book | Patreon | Wyrlde YT [=-.
An original Setting for 5e, a whole solar system of adventure. Ongoing updates, exclusies, more.
Not Talking About It / Dubbed The Oracle in the Cult of Mythology Nerds
Almost universally I play characters with some sort of honor code. Can't help it. I always want to be a team player.
I absolutely despise selfish, backstabbing bull shite. I could never play such a character as I know it ruins the play experience for so many people.
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
Kind of seriously, coming up with names on the fly. More seriously, I have a bad habit of stopping taking notes of my own during play, which means I have to back check with my players on things such as loot, the name I gave an NPC, etc. Luckily, my players are good note takers, but it does make the game somewhat slow to start sometimes
Resisting the urge to metagame using my DM knowledge. I'm generally successful but I have to take a step back and remember what my character would know about this encounter, not what I know about it (for example, whether or not the knowledge of an enemy's vulnerability is PC knowledge or Player knowledge)
A running joke at a table I played at was all of my characters suffering an eye injury, or having a missing or augmented eye in some way.
My characters are almost always outsiders with strange viewpoints. People who draw attention to commonly held but rarely analyzed opinions, habits, or biases, either by their own distinct lack thereof, or by a very vocal endorsement.
I just enjoy looking at regular things in irregular ways. Basically it's setting up a foil for more ordinary, usually more heroic, traits. You don't often get a lot of time with your villains in a D&D adventure. They tend to die within minutes of showing up. So they can't fulfill this purpose very effectively.
One of these days I'll get around to playing a traditional hero. Probably. Maybe.
Very much so, yes. Annoyingly so, in some ways. No matter how I set out to break the mold, the needs of the game always drag me back to the same theme. I get to be Team Dad because nobody else will step up and if I didn't do it, nothing would ever get done. Heh. But hey - at least we know the role well, ne? If everything is a variation on the theme, one gets a lot of polish on their theme.
Please do not contact or message me.
Question: Does anyone else find that D&D makes more sense than IRL sometimes?
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
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In 2019, I probably would have responded “Not really, though my tables often result in quite a bit of silliness.” Today? Absolutely. My table dynamics have not changed; it’s just been a hell of a past couple years.
Yes. Real life encounter design is totally unbalanced. And I swear the average int is below 10.
Yes, and not in a good way...
Seriously, if you had told me in 2019 (or even 2015 before Orange Julius Caesar got himself elected) how the last several years would have gone I probably would have laughed in your face.
At least in D&D I have control over how the world works to an extent.
The Toilet Paper Wars....
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
"The greatest difference between Fiction and Reality is that Fiction has to always make sense; reality doesn't." -- some gal named Toni
Only a DM since 1980 (3000+ Sessions) / PhD, MS, MA / Mixed, Bi, Trans, Woman / No longer welcome in the US, apparently
Wyrlde: Adventures in the Seven Cities
.-=] Lore Book | Patreon | Wyrlde YT [=-.
An original Setting for 5e, a whole solar system of adventure. Ongoing updates, exclusies, more.
Not Talking About It / Dubbed The Oracle in the Cult of Mythology Nerds
Okay, I'm going to give away my age here, and if you aren't interested in a short story answer to that question, feel free to skip this.
During the peak of the Satanic Panic of the 1980s, I was a D&D-playing, heavy metal-loving teen. I also had a good bit of toxicity in my life, that was well out of my control. In my in-between game time, I often designed elaborate keeps and dungeons (who among us didn't, am I right?). But I filled those dungeons and keeps with the most vile, evil devils and demon lords I could dream up. The more horror and terror, the better. From the outside I'm sure I was practically the poster child for "see? D&D leads to devil worship!" But thing was, it was actually a lifeline of sorts. I knew that no matter how vile and horrid the evils I came up with, that I could make (admittedly near demi-god like) characters that could defeat that evil. I could create a horrible (in game) situation where the good guys saved the day and everything was alright in the end at a time in my life (out of game) when the good guys couldn't always save the day and some things definitely did not always end up alright. I never had any real use for devils or demons and certainly not in becoming some practitioner of evil, obviously, but those horror filled castles, keeps and dungeons were a kid being able to exert some control in a world that was often very much outside of his control.
Take that B.A.D.D.!
(Also, I turned okay in the long run, I promise.)
Dumb Folk: D&D is bad, it has demons and devils and magic!
Me: I play the hero that defeats them and saves the town.
Dumb Folk: It has magic and magic is bad!
Me: Wow, that David Copperfield guy is a real jerk and he made the Statue of Liberty disappear! EVIL!
Dumb Folk: ...
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
Question of the Day: What is your favorite childhood story?
Mine is Ferdinand
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
Not really, but that may be a result of my personal play style. I will often roll up stats with no idea of what the character will end up as. Sometimes, I'll go as far as randomly rolling from a list of character folk types, classs, etc., and develop that individual from there. A human ex-soldier, fighter, with a good heart, who grew up on the mean streets of [ ], and joined the military to improve his situation has little play style in common with the self-taught, half-orc sorcerer of some obscure orc tribe, who seeks power and prestige among her eventual, magic casting peers.
Unlike some folks here, who have clearly expressed their disdain for evil characters and unheroic adventure parties, I'm happy to slip into that type of character, should the players and DM at the table deem it worthy of a session or a campaign. [I do not subject my fellow players to this kind of play, without their knowledge and approval.] I generally retire such characters early, then offer them to the DM as well-sorted NPCs, ready to go.
Too lazy again to figure out images, but I was a big Richard Scarry fan, I think since I had a childhood interest in aviation, probably A Day at the Airport was probably my favorite. I wonder if they've updated it so if the Richard Scarry characters showed up to actually spend a day at the airport, they'd be hassled by the security apparatus that was not in place at the time of original publication.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
Let the wild rumpus start!
Active characters:
Carric Aquissar, elven wannabe artist in his deconstructionist period (Archfey warlock)
Lan Kidogo, mapach archaeologist and treasure hunter (Knowledge cleric)
Mardan Ferres, elven private investigator obsessed with that one unsolved murder (Assassin rogue)
Xhekhetiel, halfling survivor of a Betrayer Gods cult (Runechild sorcerer/fighter)
I've just realized that every campaign I run needs a PC named Mr. Frumble.
Pretty much everything from Dr. Seuss.