FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

[Thia Halmades]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

36a) You do not grow organically; it is assumed that you will purchase as many books as possible to create absurd, counter-logical combinations of feats, skills & abilities all for the purpose being able to survive a series of encounters with ecologically inconsistent monsters who's prior opposition was clearly just as well equipped as you are, but must have just been fantastically stupid to have not survived the encounter, considering, among other things, that using the RAW there's almost no way we can LOSE.

[Korvar]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

37) Not only do you gain skills in lock-step, but the touch of certain Undead can suck those skills away in a similar lock-step.

[Curufea]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

I just want to say "Thanks." I am working on a new game and many of your points are why I am doing it in Hero but to see it written out gives me a nice list to keep on the side as reference as to why I want to get away from others games and do Fantasy Hero. What a great help this is. Again Thanks!

 

I just base fantasy settings on ones used in books and movies. They're incapable of being simulated in D&D and therefore are a good start for creating something believably consistant.

[Thia Halmades]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

38) That despite thought to the contrary, you are often the only capable group of adventures in a 3,000 mile radius, so there's no competition for the best treasure, dungeons, and so on.

 

39) Every dungeon you enter is clearly tailored to your current level of expertise; the treasures that the monsters are hoarding are also commensurate with your level of experience, according to a handy chart that, were it published, would make anyone wonder why they shouldn't be an adventure, since...

 

40) You'll make enough money by the end of the first game to FREAKING RETIRE.

[Korvar]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

38) That despite thought to the contrary' date=' you are often the only capable group of adventures in a 3,000 mile radius, so there's no competition for the best treasure, dungeons, and so on.[/quote']

You are the Adventuring Party Enterprise! Always the only one in the quadrant!

[Curufea]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

41) Gold is a common base metal worth about a buck when minted into coins and apparently having no weight or dimension, allowing infinite storage.

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

38) That despite thought to the contrary, you are often the only capable group of adventures in a 3,000 mile radius, so there's no competition for the best treasure, dungeons, and so on.

 

39) Every dungeon you enter is clearly tailored to your current level of expertise; the treasures that the monsters are hoarding are also commensurate with your level of experience, according to a handy chart that, were it published, would make anyone wonder why they shouldn't be an adventure, since...

 

I don't see these as unique to D&D by any stretch. In most RPG's, there aren't a bunch of competitor groups rushing to beat the PC's to the adventure hooks, nor are the challenges encountered (or rewards obtained) wildly inconsistent with the abilities of the characters. I don't think a game where starting characters are commonly wiped out because they picked the wrong adventure hook would last long.

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

32) That magic can only be done by a select few who either spend years doing research or grovel at the feet of a god or goddess.

 

Most games seem to leave magic a pretty rare thing.

 

35) All mages must keep spellbooks. Mage rarely share spells' date=' and if they do, they fact that another mage is willing to teach a spell never makes it easier for the original mage to learn it.[/quote']

 

A mage willing to share spells doesn't make the student have an easier time learning it in Hero, does it? Either you have the xp to buy it or you don't.

[PhilFleischmann]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

And speaking of money:

 

45) That players who play these adventure games really want to be accountants and keep track of every last bit of coin or other treasure with monetary value that they posess, down to the last copper piece. They need to do this in part because...

 

46) The price of everything is fixed. There are "standard" goods available just about anywhere and they always cost the same price, according to a specific price list that all the players have access to. Despite the common-sense laws of economics that even the most magically-influenced quasi-historical world would be subject to.

 

47) There is a functionally infinite amount of money-metal (gold, silver, copper, and perhaps others) around such that there are always enough coins around. Dragons can sit for a thousand years on a huge pile of gold coins without having the slightest impact on the local economy.

[Curufea]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

I just think it's safe to say - remove any *o?y from real life or fantasy literature/genre and you have D&D. e.g. No ecology, sociology, economy, etc..

[Captain Obvious]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

I just base fantasy settings on ones used in books and movies. They're incapable of being simulated in D&D and therefore are a good start for creating something believably consistant.

 

D&D does a pretty good job of simulating that Dungeons and Dragons movie, from what I hear...

[Captain Obvious]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

 

40) You'll make enough money by the end of the first game to FREAKING RETIRE.

 

Not necessarily:

 

40a) Many towns sell only goods and services that none of its inhabitants can afford.

 

40a.a) When wandering adventurers buy these superinflated goods and services, it does nothing to affect the economy of the town, even though it often represents a 50% increase in the town's wealth.

[Curufea]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

D&D does a pretty good job of simulating that Dungeons and Dragons movie' date=' from what I hear...[/quote']

 

Only if the two main characters were not of the thief class - or they rolled D10s all the time instead of D20s.

[teh bunneh]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

D&D does a pretty good job of simulating that Dungeons and Dragons movie' date=' from what I hear...[/quote']

 

The first movie, not so much. The second movie (D&D: Rise of the Dragon King) absolutely. You can almost hear the dice clattering every time the characters do something. Good cheesy movie.

[Blue Jogger]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

41) Gold is a common base metal worth about a buck when minted into coins and apparently having no weight or dimension' date=' allowing infinite storage.[/quote']

 

I turned this around in my campaign, after the big magic crash, over 90% of the gold coins proved to be yellow rocks that had illusions on them. Usually it is a sign of peasantry to use these coins as they are worth $.25 and weigh (on average) 1/10th of a pound. This proved a rather efficient way to make sure the peasants never had much spending money.

[Lucius]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

Following up on this:

 

29) That a wizard would spend an insane amount of time, treasure, and irreplaceable magical resources, enchanting a set armor or a sword that he, himself, will never be able to use.

 

I don't see a problem with this. Assuming the wizard's minion, spouse, child, friend, henchman, bodyguard, royal patron, etc. may be able to use it. Do you assume that an armorer or weaponsmith knows how to use the items they make?

 

31) That a wizard would spend an insane amount of time, treasure, and irreplaceable magical resources, enchanting an item that has no purpose but to screw over anyone who might come across it.

 

Cursed items in D&D make little sense, especially when you consider someone would have had to have made the darn thing.

 

Unless you assume that most cursed items are the result of FAILED attempts to enchant something.

 

26) That the same spell when cast by different classes will not be of the same spell level. .

 

How about just "The whole concept of spell levels."

 

 

27) Certain races cannot understand magic spells as a wizard' date=' but they can use clerical magic.[/quote']

 

If you buy into the distinction, I'm not sure that doesn't make sense. One is "do it yourself" and the other is "granted" by a higher (or lower) power.

 

28) A diety will almost always notice if their name is said in disrespect' date=' but fail to hear when called upon for help in a dire emergency.[/quote']

 

Ah, they're just like cops. Never around when you need one...

 

Lucius Alexander

 

Feeding the Monster Manual to the Palindromedary

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

28) A diety will almost always notice if their name is said in disrespect' date=' but fail to hear when called upon for help in a dire emergency.[/quote']

 

That's a GM trait. Nothing in the D&D rules specifies deities detecting their names spoken in disrespect. There were, however, Divine Intervention rules in earlier D&D editions.

[Michael Hopcroft]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

41) Simply by sitting in the center of a massive and illogical dungeon comploexs doing nothing, a necromancer or lich can pose a sufficient threat to the World that it is mandatory for adventurers to roust him out.

 

42) You can carry infinite quanities of loot even of wounded nearly to the point of death.

 

43) Even if the clock is ticking on a massive plot to destory the Earth, there's always time for looting and pillaging of the hapless Orc guards.

 

44) It is infinitely more likely that you will be betrayed by a blood relative or close friend than by a complete stranger you just met in a random bar at the start of the campaign.

[Curufea]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

45) No amount of study and research at any institute or university will enable a Mage to learn more spells. They must go out and kill things. Killing things makes you powerful. Knowledge does not.

[Captain Obvious]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

42) You can carry infinite quanities of loot even of wounded nearly to the point of death.

 

I think my DM would have been way happier if I'd accepted this when he was running us through the Caverns of Tsojcanth. I planned that expedition down to the last detail, to include a mule train for hauling food and equipment in and treasure out.

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

45) No amount of study and research at any institute or university will enable a Mage to learn more spells. They must go out and kill things. Killing things makes you powerful. Knowledge does not.

 

I'm not aware of a lot of RPG's that focus mages around study rather than adventure. Perhaps you could name a few?

[teh bunneh]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

I'm not aware of a lot of RPG's that focus mages around study rather than adventure. Perhaps you could name a few?

 

IIRC, Ars Magica. I could be wrong (it's been a long while), but I seem to recall that you weren't allowed to buy new spells/increase old spells unless you spent at least one season in research.

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

IIRC' date=' [i']Ars Magica[/i]. I could be wrong (it's been a long while), but I seem to recall that you weren't allowed to buy new spells/increase old spells unless you spent at least one season in research.

 

Could your character keep buying new spells and never adventure?

[Chris Goodwin]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

Not necessarily:

 

40a) Many towns sell only goods and services that none of its inhabitants can afford.

 

40a.a) When wandering adventurers buy these superinflated goods and services, it does nothing to affect the economy of the town, even though it often represents a 50% increase in the town's wealth.

 

40b) All towns have, in effect, an adventurers' Wal Mart, where every piece of gear is always available.

 

40b.a) Adventurers can always wear armor "off the rack".

[teh bunneh]

Re: FRPG Ideas from D&D that ain't necessarily so

 

Could your character keep buying new spells and never adventure?

 

I don't know. Someone who played Ars Magica more recently than me could probably answer.