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naraburns  nihil supernum  2yr ago (text post)   Edited 2yr ago   2706 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for October 7, 2022

Be advised; this thread is not for serious in depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

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It runs off of 2nd Edition AD&D, which is a really cool system and will have some interesting differences for players of modern D&D/CRPGs. Most of the differences are in how spellcasters work. For example, spellcasters use Vancian magic, which means they prepare spells in advance and can only use each spell as many times per day as they prepared that spell. For example, if your wizard knows 5 1st-level spells and 4 2nd-level spells but can only prepare 4 slots of 1st level spells and 2 slots of 2nd level spells, you must allocate a spell to each specific slot. Want to cast sleep more than once per day? Better prepare it multiple times. This is really cool and will satisfy that Batman fantasy. It's a lot for a new RPG player to learn, but an experienced player will really enjoy the system.

I want to second this. I adore the unique power scaling of different classes in AD&D. I'm horribly annoyed that every other class had mage envy, and tabletop designers gave in and basically turned every class into a mage. With feats or talents or dailies or whatever the fuck they call the special abilities that warp reality every fucking character has now.

Also, that unique feeling of seeing your magic users balls finally drop when they learn fireball. It's so cute watching them grow up, learn to walk, talk... mass murder...

I think that Wizards had the right of it. In a video game, it's fun to have the mage member of your party get so strong that the other party members are an afterthought. In a pen and paper game, not so much. Also, early levels as a mage in 3e (my earliest pen and paper D&D experience) are pretty much the worst gaming experience I've ever had. It's a complete buzzkill to have one or two spells per day, and after that you're useless.

Imho if you had that problem you were playing wrong. I was in a pnp ad&d 2e game a few years ago. Played a fighter with very middling stats. But those extra weapon proficiencies really let me take advantage of more of the equipment the rng gods bestowed on us. I also made ample use of my loot to purchase potions, especially fire breathing potions, to keep up.

There are plenty of extra curricular ways to punch above the confines of your class. I think this is hardest for munchkins and crpg addicts to grok.

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