12th Aug 2015, 2:58 AM"Tell a Story: About the Saving Throw That Came Back to Haunt You"
GMs are monsters. that is an undisputed fact. As such, we like to lull players into traps made from their own actions. One of the most dangerous tools in our arsenal, is the blind saving throw. Have them roll, and then not tell them the result.
It's never fair. But it is sometimes glorious.
Tell a story about the blind saving throw, and how it was awesome, or ruinous.
I did it once, as a DM, not reveal the result of a save, since it was an illness that would only have symptoms after 1d4+1 days. The guys succeeded his save anyways but still. In general though, we get the results right away.
My very first D&D character was a Gnome Bard. (Yes. Shut up. I know.) He was fun, plucky, and horrible in combat. Fortunately, the team's drunken monk took a liking to him immediately. Called him "Li'l Buddy" and kept him safe.
Going on level 6 or so, we got into some very save-the-world territory, story-wise, and relics were becoming easy to find. My Gnome had come across a dagger of Luck that only worked to let me reroll in combat, but it was well worth the uses each day. Also found a goblet.
The goblet was super obviously cursed. Somehow. But my Gnome kept not failing will saves. GM called for them basically every encounter, but I made save after save. Horrible in combat, resisted this goblet like a mofo.
Sadly, by the time I'd failed the first save, the campaign fell apart. I never got to see the fruits of my failure. :(
Heh. I've ran through a whole campaign with a single digit Wisdom score, and refused to improve it. Not anymore though, I recently got (from my character's girlfriend before going into the final dungeon) a magic item that made it two-digit, but at this point, the saves are so high, my score is still too low anyways.
I know the "tell your story" of this page is already taken, but am I the only one who purposely kept a score weakness for a long time? I'm actually curious about this.
No reason to try correcting a glaring weakness if it's still gonna be weak afterwards when those resources can be spent excelling elsewhere.
Gestalt Wizard. (Other side split between Fighter, Sorcerer, and Ultimate Magus.) Staggering the caster levels gave me class boosts to Will saves that more than made up the abysmal Wisdom score of 6. Which was already made up for by the GM's unexpected houserules on stat advancement giving me one point per level to spend when we were starting at level 10.
When you have 3 stats in the low 20s and two more in the high teens, who cares if one you don't use is at 6? Especially when a feat lets your wizard substitute a stat like, oh, I don't know, INTELLIGENCE for EVERYWHERE YOU WOULD EVER BOTHER WITH WISDOM. (Can't find the feat in D&Dtools revived, but it's effect was 'use INT in place of WIS on Will saves and a laundry list of skills including Heal.' It had certain ancestry as a prereq and could only be taken at 1st level, but I talked the DM into allowing it for a Githyanki instead of a Phoenix Clan human.)
I broke that character wide open, and I regret it, but fine-tuning the exploits was fun.
Ah. Found it in the app; it seems it was originally a quite reasonable +1 to Intelligence checks and an additional +1 to Knowledge, Scry, and Search printed in Unapproachable East for 3e.
Dragon Magazine updated it to 3.5 as allowing the taker to use their Intelligence modifier in place of their Wisdom modifier for Heal, Sense Motive, Spot, and Survival checks as well as for Will saves. ...pretty radical shift.
It's pointless gameplay-wise, but made a lot of sense from a RP angle: my bad save kept popping up through the previous dungeon, and was ranging from annoying to plain dangerous. So before we headed out for the final dungeon fight that Runelords we kept hearing about, his girlfriend gave him a wisdom amulet she had had made for him.
To dick with the GM, I made my urethra qidth four times the thickness of the penis. I also made my anal circumference eight feet, and depth seven feet, and recreated that one scene from South Park. You know the one.
The GM was not pleased. He was less pleased when I kidnapped a princess by smuggling her out in my colon.
There are, in fact, ways to have fun in F.A.T.A.L.
*Sigh*
12th Aug 2015, 12:46 AM
Well that answers that question from the discussion last page, also nice breakdown on how to do Thief-like takedowns Kale, very informative.
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Kale
12th Aug 2015, 1:04 AM
Thanks! It was fun to puzzle that out. :)
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BakaGrappler
12th Aug 2015, 2:58 AM"Tell a Story: About the Saving Throw That Came Back to Haunt You"
GMs are monsters. that is an undisputed fact. As such, we like to lull players into traps made from their own actions. One of the most dangerous tools in our arsenal, is the blind saving throw. Have them roll, and then not tell them the result.
It's never fair. But it is sometimes glorious.
Tell a story about the blind saving throw, and how it was awesome, or ruinous.
edit delete reply
Therazan
12th Aug 2015, 9:04 AM
I did it once, as a DM, not reveal the result of a save, since it was an illness that would only have symptoms after 1d4+1 days. The guys succeeded his save anyways but still. In general though, we get the results right away.
edit delete reply
TridenT
9th Apr 2016, 4:50 PM"Lucky Gnome"
My very first D&D character was a Gnome Bard. (Yes. Shut up. I know.) He was fun, plucky, and horrible in combat. Fortunately, the team's drunken monk took a liking to him immediately. Called him "Li'l Buddy" and kept him safe.
Going on level 6 or so, we got into some very save-the-world territory, story-wise, and relics were becoming easy to find. My Gnome had come across a dagger of Luck that only worked to let me reroll in combat, but it was well worth the uses each day. Also found a goblet.
The goblet was super obviously cursed. Somehow. But my Gnome kept not failing will saves. GM called for them basically every encounter, but I made save after save. Horrible in combat, resisted this goblet like a mofo.
Sadly, by the time I'd failed the first save, the campaign fell apart. I never got to see the fruits of my failure. :(
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Kinrah
12th Aug 2015, 8:02 AM
Sorry for seeming pedantic, but it looks like this page wasn't quite proofread all the way through...
Ussop -> Usopp (twice)
Emily' -> Emily's
Gangreen -> Gangrene
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DragonTrainer
12th Aug 2015, 4:30 PM
I need to start rebuilding my buffer... >_>
*Edits page*
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Therazan
12th Aug 2015, 9:00 AM
Heh. I've ran through a whole campaign with a single digit Wisdom score, and refused to improve it. Not anymore though, I recently got (from my character's girlfriend before going into the final dungeon) a magic item that made it two-digit, but at this point, the saves are so high, my score is still too low anyways.
I know the "tell your story" of this page is already taken, but am I the only one who purposely kept a score weakness for a long time? I'm actually curious about this.
edit delete reply
Disloyal Subject
12th Aug 2015, 12:53 PM
No reason to try correcting a glaring weakness if it's still gonna be weak afterwards when those resources can be spent excelling elsewhere.
Gestalt Wizard. (Other side split between Fighter, Sorcerer, and Ultimate Magus.) Staggering the caster levels gave me class boosts to Will saves that more than made up the abysmal Wisdom score of 6. Which was already made up for by the GM's unexpected houserules on stat advancement giving me one point per level to spend when we were starting at level 10.
When you have 3 stats in the low 20s and two more in the high teens, who cares if one you don't use is at 6? Especially when a feat lets your wizard substitute a stat like, oh, I don't know, INTELLIGENCE for EVERYWHERE YOU WOULD EVER BOTHER WITH WISDOM. (Can't find the feat in D&Dtools revived, but it's effect was 'use INT in place of WIS on Will saves and a laundry list of skills including Heal.' It had certain ancestry as a prereq and could only be taken at 1st level, but I talked the DM into allowing it for a Githyanki instead of a Phoenix Clan human.)
I broke that character wide open, and I regret it, but fine-tuning the exploits was fun.
edit delete reply
Disloyal Subject
12th Aug 2015, 1:02 PM
Ah. Found it in the app; it seems it was originally a quite reasonable +1 to Intelligence checks and an additional +1 to Knowledge, Scry, and Search printed in Unapproachable East for 3e.
Dragon Magazine updated it to 3.5 as allowing the taker to use their Intelligence modifier in place of their Wisdom modifier for Heal, Sense Motive, Spot, and Survival checks as well as for Will saves. ...pretty radical shift.
edit delete reply
Therazan
29th Feb 2016, 9:48 AM
It's pointless gameplay-wise, but made a lot of sense from a RP angle: my bad save kept popping up through the previous dungeon, and was ranging from annoying to plain dangerous. So before we headed out for the final dungeon fight that Runelords we kept hearing about, his girlfriend gave him a wisdom amulet she had had made for him.
edit delete reply
Raxon
12th Aug 2015, 3:50 PM
... Still better than F.A.T.A.L..
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Disloyal Subject
12th Aug 2015, 6:09 PM
I think pretty much anything is.
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*Sigh*
12th Aug 2015, 7:53 PM
>Implying anything is worse than FATAL
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Kira
13th Aug 2015, 12:41 AM
We do not speak of those that are worse then FATAL
Roll anal circumference.
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Raxon
13th Aug 2015, 9:16 AM
To dick with the GM, I made my urethra qidth four times the thickness of the penis. I also made my anal circumference eight feet, and depth seven feet, and recreated that one scene from South Park. You know the one.
The GM was not pleased. He was less pleased when I kidnapped a princess by smuggling her out in my colon.
There are, in fact, ways to have fun in F.A.T.A.L.
edit delete reply
Guest
13th Aug 2015, 2:08 PM
I think only you can find them. If anyone else can, I just might have a panic attack.
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Raxon
13th Aug 2015, 4:59 PM
The fun is in making a character that turns the whole game into a running joke.
Alternatively, making the GM sputter and glare. So much fun.
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Pram The Oracle
10th Jul 2020, 3:07 AM
Oh my god his hair is the Supernatural Gangrene
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