Way Off-Topic: Question for RPGamers

[Res Ipsa]

Bonus points for the Tiger reference!

My current party is a little weird. The original intent was to do a few short one offs to give the DM a chance to try out a bunch of ideas he had. So we just picked races/classes that we thought would be fun to play. The DM picked the opening segment of Strahd to start out with.

There are only three players. I’m a Reborn Bard. The other two are a Gnome wizard and a Hexblood Monk. All three of us are new at our respective classes. And none of us are min-maxers.

Even at level 8, The Roc was a challenge. We certainly don’t feel invincible yet! And we’re heading for the castle. Gulp.

Featherfall is one of those specialized spells that I’ve found really useful. Fall damage usually comes at very inconvenient times. And it allows for escape from bad situations.

That sounds like a fun premise for a group. I like the characters, too. Gnome wizard is a fun build and the two subclasses from Van Richten's sound like a promising mix though I haven't played or had anyone play either in a game.

I would imagine three lvl 8 PCs going up against a Roc requires some planning in order to beat it, no? Presumably your PC had become grappled and restrained after a successful talon attack (DC 19 to escape? Yikes) so the party must have had it pretty low on hp if they defeated it before it could take off on it's next turn. So it was not a given the party was going to stop it and the feather fall casting was likely then? Did someone get a timely crit?

You’re good, my friend.

The party was on a bridge with towers at the ends. There were guard stations in the base of each tower. We were traveling in a wagon with an NPC who was a good range fighter.

The bridge had damage in a couple locations. My stealth is good, so I snuck over the bridge to scout. All clear. As I turned, the roc attacked from the sky, missing on its surprise round. I cast something that prevented it from attacking one round. Tasha’s hideous laughter, maybe. On the next round, as the party scuttled across the bridge, I hit the roof with my best attack spell, Raulothim’s psychic lance. The I ducked into the closest guard house, protected by the bridge tower.

Or not. The roc landed, tried a break attack, but hit stone. Then it tried with talons, and was able to grab me. I couldn’t get away, so was immobilized for the balance of the fight. But, the roc couldn’t attack with its talons, which helped the party.

And you are on the nose, as the roc was beginning to fly away, the monk scored a fatal crit.

Damn, those birds have enormous drumsticks!

[Bret Ripley]

I would imagine three lvl 8 PCs going up against a Roc requires some planning in order to beat it, no? Presumably your PC had become grappled and restrained after a successful talon attack (DC 19 to escape? Yikes) so the party must have had it pretty low on hp if they defeated it before it could take off on it's next turn. So it was not a given the party was going to stop it and the feather fall casting was likely then? Did someone get a timely crit?

You’re good, my friend.

Ain't he, though? Holmesian, that was.

[honorentheos]

You’re good, my friend.

Ain't he, though? Holmesian, that was.

You're both way too kind. If I was actually good, I wouldn't have misidentified Hexbloods and Reborn as subclasses. And you know why I probably made that mistake? I was too caught up in trying to remember how to spell Van Richten to really think about what they were.

[Res Ipsa]

[honorentheos]

Anyone here ever used a party backstory creation tool before and, if so, which one?

Since our work game has progressed from casual one shot to a campaign I want to spend a little.time with the group fleshing out their backstories enough to give them a little more depth. And, frankly, to give me more to work with in embedding them into the world. I've picked up a Session Zero kit that uses face cards to generate random prompts the players answer to help make their characters feel more loved in and real. But I've never used anything like it before as my normal games where I plan for a campaign include weeks of backstory creation as part of the character creation process. I actually don't nail down details about the campaign until I have some backstory to weave into it. And when I was younger we just didn't really care. This is new territory for me.

[Bret Ripley]

Anyone here ever used a party backstory creation tool before and, if so, which one?

Since our work game has progressed from casual one shot to a campaign I want to spend a little.time with the group fleshing out their backstories enough to give them a little more depth. And, frankly, to give me more to work with in embedding them into the world. I've picked up a Session Zero kit that uses face cards to generate random prompts the players answer to help make their characters feel more loved in and real. But I've never used anything like it before as my normal games where I plan for a campaign include weeks of backstory creation as part of the character creation process. I actually don't nail down details about the campaign until I have some backstory to weave into it. And when I was younger we just didn't really care. This is new territory for me.

I have not, but it sounds like an interesting idea. I will do some Googling.

In AD&D and 2E we used to roll for starting wealth (which included a small chance of scoring an inherited magic item) and that was usually the extent of it. Sometimes we didn't even name our characters until they'd survived for a session or two, and even then it was sometimes just the former character's name with a II, III, or IV after it.

Many characters we played were rolled mid-session after a character death, and in those cases background information was necessarily minimal because it was taking up game time. Come to think of it, character attrition may have been a reason why our parties were so fighter-heavy: you could roll up a fighter in less than 10 minutes and get back into the action.

[honorentheos]

Anyone here ever used a party backstory creation tool before and, if so, which one?

Since our work game has progressed from casual one shot to a campaign I want to spend a little.time with the group fleshing out their backstories enough to give them a little more depth. And, frankly, to give me more to work with in embedding them into the world. I've picked up a Session Zero kit that uses face cards to generate random prompts the players answer to help make their characters feel more loved in and real. But I've never used anything like it before as my normal games where I plan for a campaign include weeks of backstory creation as part of the character creation process. I actually don't nail down details about the campaign until I have some backstory to weave into it. And when I was younger we just didn't really care. This is new territory for me.

I have not, but it sounds like an interesting idea. I will do some Googling.

In AD&D and 2E we used to roll for starting wealth (which included a small chance of scoring an inherited magic item) and that was usually the extent of it. Sometimes we didn't even name our characters until they'd survived for a session or two, and even then it was sometimes just the former character's name with a II, III, or IV after it.

Many characters we played were rolled mid-session after a character death, and in those cases background information was necessarily minimal because it was taking up game time. Come to think of it, character attrition may have been a reason why our parties were so fighter-heavy: you could roll up a fighter in less than 10 minutes and get back into the action.

Thanks, Bret. I'm interested in what you find. I ended up buying a $10 download that ties prompts to face cards and plan on using it at the start of the session we have tomorrow night. But I ended up turning it into a Tarokka deck format to fit the D&D style so it's four suites (Swords, Coins, Glyphs, and Stars) plus the high deck I'm calling "Fate". The deck is supposed to be seperated out into each suite and the player draws a card from each deck to get their prompts. Since I had to pay for it I can't share it directly but here is a taste from the "Stars" deck which represents Happiness:

Stars - Happiness

The Wizard : There was someone with whom you shared your heart.
Describe your first love: Did they feel the same way? What about them did you love most?

1 – The Transmuter: Birthdays are a cause of great celebration.
Describe your most memorable birthday. What birthday was it? What made it so memorable?

2 – The Diviner: You carry a lucky charm with you everywhere you go.
What is it? How did it come into your possession? Why do you consider it lucky?

3 – The Enchanter: A certain sound always makes you smile.
What sound is it? How did it come to be of comfort to you? Is it something you still hear now that you have begun to travel?

4 – The Abjurer: Not all failures are ruinous.
What failure did you learn something from? How did failing make you stronger? Do you remember it with fondness or embarrassment?

5 – The Elementalist: You had a stalwart companion growing up.
Describe your childhood pet. How did they come to be your companion? Are they still your pet?

6 – The Invoker: There was a birth you remember with great happiness.
Who’s birth was exceptionally meaningful to you? What do you remember most about them being born? Why were they so important to you?

7 – The Illusionist: Your hometown was famous for a great festival.
What was the festival celebrating? What kind of festivities were there? How did this shape you growing up?

8 – The Necromancer: Before you were an adventurer, you had other pastimes.
What was your favorite hobby? Were you always good at it? Do you still practice it now that you are an adventurer?

9 – The Conjurer: Everyone has their tales of triumph.
What story from your pre adventuring days are you most proud of? Why? Do you still tell it?

I'll let you know how it goes and what thoughts I have after having tried it out. Wish me luck!

Oh, and everything you said about your older games is very much true for the games I played in AD&D and Basic/Expert back in the day. We did give them names from the start but it was so we could eulogize them when they met their inevitable early deaths in some funny or stupid way. We almost always had a few back-up characters ready who would end up being prisoners or wanderers the party just happened to run into after a PC died. Explaining their appearance was probably the most work any of us put into backstory back then.