Group 1: OOC I

[dmw71]

Cool.

I'll try to get you guys moving again tonight.

[dmw71]

I'll try to get you guys moving again tonight.

This didn't happen. Obviously.

It's been a busy weekend, and my plate is pretty full for tomorrow as well. It's looking like the next update might not be until Monday, but there is out outside chance I might be able to squeak it out tomorrow.


We'll see.

[dmw71]

Bren will also toss a fire bolt where it may do some good:

Fire Bolt Attack [1d20+5] = 12+5 = 17
Fire Bolt Damage [1d10] = 8

Want to roll for your own initiative?

[ravenn4544]

Edited my post - should have had you roll

[dmw71]

[dmw71]

I will update this group tonight, or after an action for Quaalxor has been posted.

[dmw71]

Perfect. Everyone is in.

With today being Friday, I'm not going to kill myself to get an update out, but I'll get you moving again over the weekend for sure.

[drpete]

I think "Healers Kit" lets you stabilize them without a roll or the medicine skill...?

[dmw71]

I think "Healers Kit" lets you stabilize them without a roll or the medicine skill...?

True.

I didn't see Strega having a healer's kit in her possession, though (she had a herbalism kit). Now that the conflict is essentially over, anyone that does have a healer's kit is free to use it.

[drpete]

Oskar has the healers kit from the barn encounter. With 2 failed saves under his belt, I figure we can't really leave Tannaris' fate to chance. Basically, Oskar would bring the bandage kit over, and work with Strega.

[dmw71]

Strega continues to work on Tannaris with her healing kit.

I didn't see Strega having a healer's kit in her possession, though (she had a herbalism kit).

I just double-checked, and I don't see where Strega has a healer's kit:

Strega.jpg (161.58 KiB) Viewed 2295 times

Oskar has the healers kit from the barn encounter.

It doesn't matter to me who actually uses it, just so long as long as one of you has a kit.

And, yes, you can work together as long as it's a task both characters could do independently, which they could in this situation.

[Rex]

Nope, I have a herbalism kit. I will have to fix that at my first chance.

[dmw71]

"No problem... can we maybe get you some armor, though, or a shield?

It's kind of a shame you started out as a Wizard, not a Fighter, as the later would obviously start with armor.

Though, I appreciate it, as Wizard is the one class I find the most challenging to roleplay the switch into because of their spellbook and how their spells work.

It's the middle of the night, and the town is under attack, so finding armor now will be unlikely, but, for future reference, here is how 5e handles casting spells while wearing armor:

"Because of the mental focus and precise gestures required for spellcasting, you must be proficient with the armor you are wearing to cast a spell. You are otherwise too distracted and physically hampered by your armor for spellcasting."

[drpete]

He started out as a fighter, though.

I'm not trying to be difficult, just trying to figure out how to survive the night...

[dmw71]

He started out as a fighter, though.

I'm not trying to be difficult, just trying to figure out how to survive the night...

The lack of armor made me think it was the other way around, but you're right, he was a Fighter first.

I went back though conversations in the private forum and the leather armor he started with was intentionally sold, with the intention of using Mage Armor instead.

It's a situation that can be remedied --

Hmmm, I'd be willing to say he sold the armor here in town, so there's a perfectly fitted set available... but, you'll need to reach that shop.

Of course, it's something Gerrin will want to do for his character.

[Gerrin]

"No problem... can we maybe get you some armor, though, or a shield?

It's kind of a shame you started out as a Wizard, not a Fighter, as the later would obviously start with armor.

Though, I appreciate it, as Wizard is the one class I find the most challenging to roleplay the switch into because of their spellbook and how their spells work.

It's the middle of the night, and the town is under attack, so finding armor now will be unlikely, but, for future reference, here is how 5e handles casting spells while wearing armor:

"Because of the mental focus and precise gestures required for spellcasting, you must be proficient with the armor you are wearing to cast a spell. You are otherwise too distracted and physically hampered by your armor for spellcasting."

So saying that I could wear plate and still spell cast ? Also the mage armor gives me better protection than the leather.

[dmw71]

So saying that I could wear plate and still spell cast ? Also the mage armor gives me better protection than the leather.

Technically, yes. The Fighter class has proficiency with all armor and shields, so, yes, a multi-class Wizard who's also a Fighter will share this proficiency, and be able to cast spells while wearing any armor.

As for Mage Armor providing better protection than leather armor, that is true.

The downside is that it does require expending a 1st-level spell slot to cast.

A 16 AC, which is what Tannaris has, isn't terrible. It's actually tied for the second highest.

I went back and researched the attacks that knocked Tannaris out:

Kobold (Green) vs Tannaris (16)(+): [1d20+4] = 20+4 = 24 | [1d20+4] = 17+4 = 21, [1d4+2] = 4+2 = 6 ([1d4] = 4)
Kobold (Green) vs Tannaris (16)(+): [1d20+4] = 3+4 = 7 | [1d20+4] = 20+4 = 24, [1d4+2] = 4+2 = 6 ([1d4] = 3)
Kobold (Red) vs Tannaris (16)(+): [1d20+4] = 17+4 = 21 | [1d20+4] = 14+4 = 18, [1d4+2] = 2+2 = 4 ([1d4] = 1)

A 21, 24, and 18 would have hit anyone in the group.

His getting knocked out was just bad luck.

[Gerrin]

So saying that I could wear plate and still spell cast ? Also the mage armor gives me better protection than the leather.

Technically, yes. The Fighter class has proficiency with all armor and shields, so, yes, a multi-class Wizard who's also a Fighter will share this proficiency, and be able to cast spells while wearing any armor.

As for Mage Armor providing better protection than leather armor, that is true.

The downside is that it does require expending a 1st-level spell slot to cast.

A 16 AC, which is what Tannaris has, isn't terrible. It's actually tied for the second highest.

I went back and researched the attacks that knocked Tannaris out:

Kobold (Green) vs Tannaris (16)(+): [1d20+4] = 20+4 = 24 | [1d20+4] = 17+4 = 21, [1d4+2] = 4+2 = 6 ([1d4] = 4)
Kobold (Green) vs Tannaris (16)(+): [1d20+4] = 3+4 = 7 | [1d20+4] = 20+4 = 24, [1d4+2] = 4+2 = 6 ([1d4] = 3)
Kobold (Red) vs Tannaris (16)(+): [1d20+4] = 17+4 = 21 | [1d20+4] = 14+4 = 18, [1d4+2] = 2+2 = 4 ([1d4] = 1)

A 21, 24, and 18 would have hit anyone in the group.

His getting knocked out was just bad luck.

Yeah, I think it was more bad luck than squishy character

[dmw71]

I just wanted to draw attention to a new Feedback topic I created.

Feel free to use it, or not. But it's there.

[dmw71]

Another more general announcement. Apologies in advance for the many tangents which are sure to litter the below, as I can already tell my train of thought is ready to get derailed, repeatedly.


So, my paid subscription with Roll20 expired a couple months ago, and while I did pay to extend it for one month, but I'm not planning on extending it again. I still take issue with many of Nolan's decisions (Roll20 co-founder).

Fantasy Grounds, a competing VTT, announced (on April Fools' Day) that they're finally launching their much anticipated a Kickstarter for their Unity upgrade in a month, or May 1st, or this Wednesday. Now, I'm not a gamer, and don't really understand what Unity is (other than a gaming engine), but it's supposedly a big deal.

Apparently I purchased a standard license for Fantasy Ground back in February of 2016 but never used it as it is kind of a pain to get to work online (where as Roll20 only exists online), and settled on Roll20 instead. Plus, Fantasy Ground does not support dynamic lighting, which is one of the biggest features I look for. Well, dynamic lighting (or line of sight) is being introduced with their new release (and the demo of it I saw looks better than how Roll20 manages it; I like how the full obstacle (e.g. bolder) that ultimately will obstruct vision is in view, instead of the object itself being obstructed as well).

Anyway, I installed Fantasy Grounds over the weekend, and while it pushes the limitations of my now oldish laptop, I did get it to work; not the online part, but the actual application. (Sadly, I have a nagging fear that my laptop won't be able to handle their cool new upgrade... but we'll see.)

Regardless, after a lot of prominent 5e content makers jumped ship and left Roll20 for Fantasy Grounds, they've created YouTube videos about working with Fantasy Grounds and... man, after watching and following along with one of them... holy crap! Fantasy Grounds almost certainly has a steeper learning curve than does Roll20, but it is actually really impressive in what it does. So much so it's almost making me re-think my D&D Beyond investment (which I love), but not quite.

It makes me sick when I stop and think about it, but I've invested over $600 into Roll20 since 2014 when I joined, but I'm ready to start all over with Fantasy Grounds.

Almost.

Aside from the standard license (which I purchased in 2016), I dipped my toes into the water by purchasing the Player's Handbook in Fantasy Grounds yesterday. It really does make character generation a breeze.

But that's the thing. I really need to sit down and assess my needs. Fantasy Grounds for actual gameplay will be great! But, I've played exactly ONE actual game online in the five years I've been a Roll20 member, so do I really need to commit to all the rules (which support gameplay), or just map tiles and tokens?

Either way, I'm pretty firmly convinced that I'm going to switch platforms. Gradually.

A couple other cool things about Fantasy Grounds: The amount of content available, and their prices. Fantasy Grounds pretty much has every sourcebook and adventure/module available, where as the Roll20 catalog is severely limited. I was looking, and they even have the 2e rulebooks built in and available for purchase which I think is outstanding! I almost certainly won't be investing into that ruleset financially (at least not right away), but Roll20 and even D&D Beyond aren't touching older editions. Plus, content on Fantasy Grounds is less expensive.
Books, modules, etc... on Roll20 are full price (e.g. MM = $49.95), where as they're cheaper on Fantasy Grounds (e.g. MM = $29.99). The individual token packs are even a buck cheaper on Fantasy Grounds than they are Roll20 ($4.99 vs $5.99).

I've only experimented with character creation (why, I'm not sure?) so far in Fantasy Grounds, and have zero clue how to make maps (which is pretty much the exclusive reason I even use VTTs), so don't expect an immediate transition.

But do expect one.