Friendship is Dragons
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Page 472 - Barber-ian (Sorry)
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Newbiespud
26th Jul 2014, 6:00 AM
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33 Comments:
Good thing Dash didn't roll higher. She would have killed somepony.
D&D-- The party was fighting some werewolves. The Alpha-Male grappled the wizard and was slowly choking him to death. The party Barbarian wanted to save the wizard, but his dice were rolling terrible. And in a grapple, there's a 50% chance he'd miss the werewolf and hit the wizard (who's running out of HP).
DM: "So what do you do?"
Barbarian: I charge the wizard with my axe!"
Wiz: "Wait what?! You'll kill me!"
Barbarian: "Trust me, not with this die.
Barbarian charges the wizard, swings his axe, and Rolls a 1 on the attack. Because I ruled rolling a 1 in a grapple hits the other grappler, I had to follow through... The Barbarian's axe misses the wizard and cleaves into the werewolf's head like a tomato!
Barbarian: Fast heal THAT, lassie!"
DM: "So what do you do?"
Barbarian: I charge the wizard with my axe!"
Wiz: "Wait what?! You'll kill me!"
Barbarian: "Trust me, not with this die.
Barbarian charges the wizard, swings his axe, and Rolls a 1 on the attack. Because I ruled rolling a 1 in a grapple hits the other grappler, I had to follow through... The Barbarian's axe misses the wizard and cleaves into the werewolf's head like a tomato!
Barbarian: Fast heal THAT, lassie!"
Ye Gods, I've had nights like that, but I've never decided to just throw my hands up and say "the hell with it" knowing that the capricious dice gods would probably just throw me a 20 out of sheer spite.
That's actually a question that's come up a few times in my play sessions. What do you do for rolls when someone is very specifically not aiming for anything in particular but like in this case probably wouldn't want to hurt anybody?
If you're trying to come close to someone, follow the rules for ranged attacks into melee or into a grapple, (depending on how close you want to come).
If you are just trying to throw it through an area with people in it, just declare a low AC for the opening.
If you are looking for a house rule for trying to come close but not hit, you might make it a normal roll to hit with any bonuses from 'skill', (BAB, Dex bonus, etc. but not a STR bonus to hit), being reversed.
If you are just trying to throw it through an area with people in it, just declare a low AC for the opening.
If you are looking for a house rule for trying to come close but not hit, you might make it a normal roll to hit with any bonuses from 'skill', (BAB, Dex bonus, etc. but not a STR bonus to hit), being reversed.
In my group, if you're specifically not wanting to hit something in a crowd/group, we assign a -4 penalty and then you roll. The penalty means that you won't that specificed person/object even on a spectacular fail. Sort of like buying "To-hit" insurance. :)
When I played a sorcerer in my first campaign, the DM actually let me have a spell that shot a blast of confetti at stuff. I mostly used it to spice up the dialogue between the heroes and the villains, but I did use it for a purpose much like this one at one point. It didn't end so well for us, though--I was kicked out for my rudeness, and I was the social tank, so the rest of us had a lot of trouble doing what we needed to do.
I can only imagine that Fancy Pants will be pretty cool about this.
I can only imagine that Fancy Pants will be pretty cool about this.
Not a perfect system, given that any properly paranoid member of such a guild with enough clout is likely to have a few loyal enforcers and be used to calling on them, but certainly worth a shot. Fancy Pants' first reaction could give us a clue as to whether he's really a cop or a thief.
however Elusive or a direct agent of Elusive would have ensured any party guards were on the take, so calling for the guards would be natural Instinct for either a cop, a thief or a dirty cop working for the thieves or a traitor thief working for the cops.
They don't have to be on the take necessarily. Elusive and friends would naturally have identities and covers of nobility. ANY noble in that position would be both entitled and obliged to call down guards on party crashers. Elusive especially would be so deep in cover that he would almost certainly call ordinary guards so that there are fewer ponies on his payroll and fewer to suspect him.
Well, if Elusive is Celestia, then you could say that ALL the guards are working for her, after all lets be honest, with the experience of 1000 years of successful government there is no way a group of kids can outmaneuver her unless she either allows it (too bloody to clean the mess) or she is personally involved.
I'm going to have to remember that "This one's just a prototype" compromise. That's clever.
It's a common thing for gadgeteers in superhero games: You can build the "solve this week's problem" device from the stuff you find in the villain's lab even though it totally blows out your gadget pool's capacity but you won't be able to build it again until you have figured out how to duplicate the McGuffinite power core, (i.e. have spend a bunch of XPs on the pool).
In a Final Fantasy styled campaign years ago I played a moogle tinker. He could invent things on the spot. The downside is that his inventions will always fall apart after a certain duration (set by GM and dependent on how well I rolled to build the invention). On occasional spectacular failures or super-short duration the invention may explode. XD
It was fun!
It was fun!
I'm currently in a campaign where my rogue invented the water saw with a Decanter of endless water, sovereign glue, and an adamantine funnel. I stole one of those things, but I made a contract with a blacksmith to make the funnels (at a reduced price no less) in exchange for the repeated business of him being the supplier. Me and an ally- a dwarf cleric- went into business together. He's the face while I handle the business. We make about 2k each a sale in profit, not bad for a level 4 party.
I had to work my ass off for the prototype, between theft, chases, and scrounging up money. But it was so worth it for an object a little bigger than a pitcher that can cut through solid stone with a little time
I had to work my ass off for the prototype, between theft, chases, and scrounging up money. But it was so worth it for an object a little bigger than a pitcher that can cut through solid stone with a little time
Instead she throws the mallet into the crowd, causing a pony to... wig-out.
So, the inspector is legit(?), but what about Fancy? Is he a cop, or criminal? There is only one way to find out.
This is either perfect or the complete opposite of what might happen.
Now, putting someone's life at risk... that might be a different story.
DM:You are confronted by an Armed Guard. What do you do?
War: I kick him in the nards!
THF: I steal his shoes!
RNG: I use his helmet as a chamber pot!
War: I kick him in the nards!
THF: I steal his shoes!
RNG: I use his helmet as a chamber pot!
When I get robbed, it's usually pants that they take. Though burglary is a little different from armed robbery.
And then mail it to his widow! And then steal it back from her!
I believe I promised you a story about party crashing on Tuesday. Well, here it is:
So the party had successfully gotten into a ball thrown by their npc patron's evil older sister. Everyone was wearing jester's motley to pass as his contribution to the entertainment except for the disney-princess cleric who was in a ball gown. The patron actually wanted the party to be ruined and his sister humiliated, but not until he gave the signal ("It was like lightning!").
The witch, seconds in the door, targeted a vat of fondue being brought in with Purify Food and Drink, thus ruining its flavor and consistency (becoming more like frozen cheese-stick quality). The wizard turned invisible and started pantsing the guests and making illusionary chairs. The zen archer began passing around cigars full of sea-weed (read "Weed from the sea") and got most of the gentry stoned. The cleric and the npc patron were beating his sister at dancing until the party stripper-fighter flung herself at the npc and displaced the cleric. A few more frenzied hand-offs occurred as the cleric and fighter battled for the npc's attention.
Finally, the npc gave the signal and the party got serious. An Unseen Servant went around actively pulling chairs out from other guests. The bard-barian, previously dancing with all the unattractive guests, joined the band and got them playing Ballroom Blitz. A solid cloud of weed-smoke had turned most of the guests into giggling stoners. The bard put Grease on the stairs to trip up the fleeing guests, who were ushered along by a newly created Cheese Slime that shook its way out of the fondue vat and chased the remaining guests out of the ballroom.
The party was then alone by the secret door of quest importance...
So the party had successfully gotten into a ball thrown by their npc patron's evil older sister. Everyone was wearing jester's motley to pass as his contribution to the entertainment except for the disney-princess cleric who was in a ball gown. The patron actually wanted the party to be ruined and his sister humiliated, but not until he gave the signal ("It was like lightning!").
The witch, seconds in the door, targeted a vat of fondue being brought in with Purify Food and Drink, thus ruining its flavor and consistency (becoming more like frozen cheese-stick quality). The wizard turned invisible and started pantsing the guests and making illusionary chairs. The zen archer began passing around cigars full of sea-weed (read "Weed from the sea") and got most of the gentry stoned. The cleric and the npc patron were beating his sister at dancing until the party stripper-fighter flung herself at the npc and displaced the cleric. A few more frenzied hand-offs occurred as the cleric and fighter battled for the npc's attention.
Finally, the npc gave the signal and the party got serious. An Unseen Servant went around actively pulling chairs out from other guests. The bard-barian, previously dancing with all the unattractive guests, joined the band and got them playing Ballroom Blitz. A solid cloud of weed-smoke had turned most of the guests into giggling stoners. The bard put Grease on the stairs to trip up the fleeing guests, who were ushered along by a newly created Cheese Slime that shook its way out of the fondue vat and chased the remaining guests out of the ballroom.
The party was then alone by the secret door of quest importance...
Fondue golem? I need to use that some time. Also the Disney Princess Cleric, that just sounds like it would be fun.
This calls for research...