Group 2: OOC I

[GreyWolfVT]

yeah a ranger that rolls a 1 on stealth....then again he isn't proficient in it either....i guess that is his excuse for being overly loud and giving away their position....

[GreyWolfVT]

you know Pulpatoon I feel like pulling a Startrek and going "KAAAAAANNN!" when i see your characters name yes i know Startrek is was Khan not Kan Dram's last post really made me want to say that though since he only referenced half your characters name.

[Pulpatoon]

It's a Mongolian name, so there's probably an etymological connection.

[Dram]

[dmw71]

I'll move you guys again tomorrow.

[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.

[Scott308]

I'm playing in a Dragon Heist campaign a friend is running every other Monday over Fantasy Grounds. It's got some really nice features. Also, he's looking for another player or two if you are interested.

[dmw71]

I'm playing in a Dragon Heist campaign a friend is running every other Monday over Fantasy Grounds. It's got some really nice features. Also, he's looking for another player or two if you are interested.

I appreciate the offer, and it's tempting, but I'm actually in conversations with the owner of a FLGS about running a game at his place... on Monday nights. He already hosts many, many games of D&D every Wednesday night, but with this being my first time trying to run a 5e game live... I'm hoping he'll make an exception for me to do it on a quieter night, and that night looks like it's shaping up to be on Monday.

I am really impressed with Fantasy Grounds, though. I doubt I'll be looking to join a regular game anytime soon, but if I can get the connecting online part figured out, I may attempt to run a few one-offs when scheduling on my end allows for it.

Thanks again for the thought, though. It sounds like fun.

[dmw71]

Another announcement:

I hated that I had to do it, but this group is getting smaller. Even after relaxing the pace of play requirement, it still seemed too difficult for a couple players to keep up. The lack of effort, involvement, and support as you work through the story is not fair to the rest of you and was becoming a source of frustration for me.

So, my plan is to NPC both Targ and Urth through this current encounter, then retire them into town. I have officially extended an invitation to another player to fill one of those slots, and am awaiting their reply, but that might be it. I think, at least for now, I will run the group at 4-5 characters instead of 6, which was a lot.

If you have any thoughts, concerns, or whatever in response to this, feel free to respond here, or privately in your individual forums.


Thanks,
Dave

[Faanku]

Hey guys, I'll be joining you very soon.
I'm in the process of rolling my character and was wondering which paths/archetypes you were thinking of taking, so I can adjust accordingly.
Good to meet you all o/

[Scott308]

Welcome to the party! Characters...let's see. Of the two characters we are losing, one is a half elf rogue, but we still have a rogue. The other character is/ was a human Warlock. This will leave us with no arcane caster, so if you wanted to play a Warlock, Wizard, or Sorcerer, that'd be great! If you don't want to play an arcane caster and would rather play something else we'll be ok.

[GreyWolfVT]

Welcome. Yeah uh what Scott said.

[Faanku]

Aye, I saw we were down an arcane. One of my 2 characters was a wizard, so I'll probably run with her.

[dmw71]

Aye, I saw we were down an arcane. One of my 2 characters was a wizard, so I'll probably run with her.

I haven't had a chance to really review the wizard you posted, but I'm sure it's fine.

I just started working on the next update a bit ago. I may try to get her worked into it, or the next update for sure.

[Scott308]

Looks good to me. Sounds like there may be lots of bells ringing, as Dureau's go-to is Toll the Dead. Portent can be a really nice ability, although it may be a bit more difficult to use properly in a PbF format.

[dmw71]

Turned out to be a very busy weekend, and I was barely online. Now it's Sunday night, and when I would normally be starting my updates, I'm about to start watching Game of Thrones.

Then, this upcoming week looks busy for me. Expect this, and all my other games, to maybe lag a bit... probably until Thursday.

[Faanku]

I did not have Paleo carry through with the 'help' action because it would not have worked as you described. In order for the Help action to provide assistance, you/Paleo need to remain within 5-feet of the target.

"Alternatively, you can aid a friendly creature in attacking a creature within 5 feet of you. You feint, distract the target, or in some other way team up to make your ally's attack more effective. If your ally attacks the target before your next turn, the first attack roll is made with advantage."

Plus, Help is an action. So is Disengage. Even if the 5-foot rule wasn't a thing, leaving the space of an opponent you/Paleo just distracted via the Help action would not allow for a formal Disengagement, and would prompt an attack of opportunity against it.

From Sage Advice:
If you use the Help action to distract a foe, do you have to stay within 5 feet of it for the action to work? No, you can take the action and then move away. The action itself is what grants advantage to your ally, not your staying next to the foe.

Also, owls have a racial ability that allows them to move freely without provoking:
Flyby. The owl doesn't provoke opportunity attacks when it flies out of an enemy's reach.

As a long-suffering DM of an Arcane Trickster archer, the flyby help/sneak attack combo is tried and tested in our group!

[dmw71]

I did not have Paleo carry through with the 'help' action because it would not have worked as you described. In order for the Help action to provide assistance, you/Paleo need to remain within 5-feet of the target.

"Alternatively, you can aid a friendly creature in attacking a creature within 5 feet of you. You feint, distract the target, or in some other way team up to make your ally's attack more effective. If your ally attacks the target before your next turn, the first attack roll is made with advantage."

Plus, Help is an action. So is Disengage. Even if the 5-foot rule wasn't a thing, leaving the space of an opponent you/Paleo just distracted via the Help action would not allow for a formal Disengagement, and would prompt an attack of opportunity against it.

From Sage Advice:
If you use the Help action to distract a foe, do you have to stay within 5 feet of it for the action to work? No, you can take the action and then move away. The action itself is what grants advantage to your ally, not your staying next to the foe.

Also, owls have a racial ability that allows them to move freely without provoking:
Flyby. The owl doesn't provoke opportunity attacks when it flies out of an enemy's reach.

As a long-suffering DM of an Arcane Trickster archer, the flyby help/sneak attack combo is tried and tested in our group!

I totally stand corrected.

As crazy as it sounds, I have never actually used (or DM'd anyone using) a familiar... like, ever. While I did read up on the spell last night while working on my update, but didn't take the extra step to look at the owl beyond making a note of its speed. I totally missed its flyby ability (which makes it a pretty helpful ally).

Lazy (and tired) DM.


For my own future reference:

• Find Familiar
  • Owl
• Can a familiar use Help to grant advantage at range?
• When using the Help Action, do you need to remain within 5′ of the target?
• Help action: can/must you specify which ally is helped?

[BearSiren817]

So I would get advantage on the shot but no sneak attack since the owl moved away correct?