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Thread: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
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2014-10-09, 05:19 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Mar 2013
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- Toronto
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Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
The adventurers are hired by a mysterious stranger to escort them through the dungeon to kill the dragon.
Once the dragon is killed the stranger decides to set up shop as a merchant/traveling minstrel/barkeep/crime lord/scholar/professor of magic where they are an invaluable resource to the adventurers, and at the heartbeat of a large network of information where they can find out who really wanted that dragon dead.
When the adventurers spend the illusory gold the stranger offers to lend them gold to pay their debts in exchange for hunting down the old enemies of the dragon.
Once the enemies have been killed the stranger gives the party more items that turn out to be cursed, then reveals themself as the first dragon and proceeds to tear party a new one.
It's like xorvintaal, only with more betterness!
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2014-10-09, 05:20 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2011
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
There's your rule. With enough imagination, almost anything can be a plot hook.
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2014-10-09, 05:31 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2014
- Location
- Canada
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
Foxtrot: always have an item that allows you to breathe underwater handy
Uniform: Always have the sheets you used to calculate all of your to hit and damage bonusses handy so the DM can check it when he/she wants... otherwise you may have to start over
Charlie: don't worry about the names of NPCs overly much... the party will always give them nicknames and refuse to use the names you gave them - unless the name was really awesome and easy to remember
Bob - You sick person! You thought that this would be Kilo didn't you :P: When metagaming during battle, don't let the DM know that you know the stats and weaknesses of the thing you are fighting. Otherwise the DM will get obscure and you will be completely screwedLast edited by Ferronach; 2014-10-09 at 05:32 PM.
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2014-10-09, 05:43 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Sep 2011
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
Rule [quaternion of your choice goes here]: At some point, you will come across a hole which, if you drop a rock or something down it, you will not hear it hit the bottom. It's really deep. (This is an oddly constant trope across DMs, in my experience.)
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2014-10-09, 06:06 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2013
- Location
- Tijuana, México.
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Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
(Rule [quaternion of your choice goes here])X: By common sense and by having at least an Intelligence score of 5, do not free jump on it; the falling damage you'll eat will start hurting when your DM ask: "Can you lend me some d6's, please?"
Rule #Caaaaaaaaarl!: Do not take 5 templates on your character whose LA is 2 lower because of Incarnate Construct; the possibility of your character being born in any method that you could explain with backstory is supbar in comparison with a half-vampire. Yes, that movie was mentioned. No, not even then.Last edited by Yael; 2014-10-09 at 06:10 PM.
Check out which is the Playground's favorite Dragon!
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2014-10-09, 06:49 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Nov 2013
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
Rule pi: In a dungeon, if you come across a fountain never drink the water. 50/50 chance the fountain has an important function.
Rule e: In a dungeon, no statue is ever just a statue. At best you were just lucky enough not to trigger whatever makes it activate.
Rule i: In a dungeon, when you come across a very large diamond that is worth a fortune, it is a key. You absolutely must use it at the appropriate time. It will then disappear or turn to useless dust. You will never have it as treasure.
Rule 6.0221413e + 23: In a dungeon, if you come across a treasure room that has lots and lots and lots of loose coin that's not an illusion, no monster to fight, but how unfortunate you have no means to carry it all, encumbeing your progress, and decide to "come back later" to pick it up when you're ready to leave, you will never come back later. Some event in the dungeon will either have you teleport/portal to some location outside the dungeon far away, often a very large diamond was the key, or you need to beat a hasty retreat and do not have the time to go into the treasure room to gather the coins in whatever makeshift carryall you were thinking it about. The treasure room only existed for the DM to tease you. He never, ever intended for you to get it.
Rule of THE UTMOST IMPORTANT: Never, ever, ever, and I mean EVER release an imprisoned creature/person.
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2014-10-09, 07:05 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2006
- Location
- Sunnydale
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
The corollary of following this rule is that if you don't release them, they'll turn out to be the MacGuffin: all of the enemy motivation will disappear if you don't free that captive, and the DM's whole plot will fall apart. Rocks will fall, lava will flow, and your characters will all die horrible, meaningless deaths because there's no good way for the game to continue.
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2014-10-09, 07:23 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Jun 2013
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Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
Rule 2113: An Illusionary Dragon Created with Silent/Minor/Major Image, can solve all of your problems.
Rule 2113 a): it might cause dragon hunters to be summoned when you do it though.
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2014-10-09, 07:26 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2008
- Location
- Dominion of Canadia
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
This one needs extra emphasis. One loses count of the number of ancient sealed abominations and plague spreading lunatics from bygone ages who have been unleashed back upon the world that way. And even if you go to the dungeon specifically to release them because you need their help right now do deal with what you assume to be a bigger threat, rest assured you will have to divert time from your goals to contend with them before the end. And even if you have no intention of releasing them, merely obtain information, they will find a way to trick you into releasing them anyway. You know what? Just don't even bother talking to them.
That little girl in the bedroom with iron walls? She's an insane reality warping fey. That soft spoken old man in the circle of black candles? With patience he can Mind Seed a copy of himself into every warm body on the Prime. That comatose black haired maiden on the ruined fane's altar? She's the first Black Dragon, cunning beyond mortal ken, brainwashed and crazy, and wants nothing less than the total genocide or of all non-Humans. That charming young lad in the Thief's Guild cellar? He's their lawyer.
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2014-10-09, 07:44 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Feb 2011
- Location
- Texas
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Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
I've got a new fantasy TTRPG about running your own fencing school in a 3 musketeers pastiche setting. Book coming soon.
Check out my NEW sci-fi TTRPG about first contact. Cool alien races, murderous AIs, and more. New expansion featuring rules for ships! New book here NOW!
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2014-10-09, 08:29 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Jun 2013
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2014-10-09, 08:32 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Feb 2014
- Location
- Sovereign State of Denial
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
I think we have at least two people having named their rule after the number for 1 mole.
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2014-10-09, 08:41 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Sep 2008
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2014-10-09, 11:20 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2010
- Location
- London, EU
- Gender
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
I don't know — I did this to a bunch of Dwarves:
After destroying a Lich's Phylactery (long story) which was located near an abandoned Nymph's pool they recovered, amongst other things, a 5K gem. They determined that this contained a soul of someone whom the Lich had imprisoned. The "moral" dilemma was do the Dwarves smash the large beautiful diamond and release the prisoner, or preserve the diamond ? They smashed the gem. From it emerged a Nymph who, after blinding half of them, proceeded to grapple with them. The ones she managed to kiss received a certain feat as a reward.π = 4
Consider a 5' radius blast: this affects 4 squares which have a circumference of 40' — Actually it's worse than that.
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2014-10-09, 11:54 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Mar 2012
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- Louisianna USA
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Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
Never let the party rogue out of your sight for a second if there is a chance he might do something stupid, or muderous, or self-satisfying.
Never let the BSF come up with the plan for an important fight.
Never let the wizard out of your sight in a library or you will never find him again.
Always ready an action to turn that helpless npc the cleric is about to heal into a fine red mist.
Always let the bard do the talking when dealing with bar wenches. Best case you get quality tail, and the worst case is him wearing a drink.
Leave the paladin at the inn when you go whoring.
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2014-10-10, 12:49 AM (ISO 8601)
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- Jan 2011
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- Dromund Kaas
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2014-10-10, 01:24 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2012
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2014-10-10, 01:27 AM (ISO 8601)
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- Mar 2013
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- Tijuana, México.
- Gender
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
Rule 3.14159265359: Do not distract the Paladin at the inn if he's a PC, metagame hits hard. No, not even if you can charm him. No, not even then.
Check out which is the Playground's favorite Dragon!
>> My Extended Signature <<
Hey guys, I'm a vestige! And a spell!
Awesome avatar by Cuthalion.
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2014-10-10, 02:12 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2010
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
Rule i^e:Remember the main difference between thieves and adventurers: "Thieves will steal everything that isn't nailed down, on fire, or trying to kill them. Adventurers are not nearly so picky"
Corollary:If something is valuable, but on fire, nailed down, and trying to kill you, this is a challenge to see how you can loot it.Avatar by TinyMushroom.
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2014-10-10, 02:21 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2010
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
My group is really extra-screwed, then. We're trudging through an evil monk's fortress, and we've released almost every prisoner we've seen. (All women. He's been collecting them. Yes, it's probably at least as bad as you're imagining.)
One of them was a succubus, but we knew that when we sprung her. Power-damping shackles or no, her screwing us over (literally or figuratively) is inevitable.Imagine if all real-world conversations were like internet D&D conversations...
Protip: DnD is an incredibly social game played by some of the most socially inept people on the planet - Lev
I read this somewhere and I stick to it: "I would rather play a bad system with my friends than a great system with nobody". - Trevlac
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2014-10-10, 06:08 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Feb 2011
- Location
- Texas
- Gender
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
I've got a new fantasy TTRPG about running your own fencing school in a 3 musketeers pastiche setting. Book coming soon.
Check out my NEW sci-fi TTRPG about first contact. Cool alien races, murderous AIs, and more. New expansion featuring rules for ships! New book here NOW!
Iron Chef Medals!
Amazing Princess Mononoke avatar by Dispozition
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2014-10-10, 09:14 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Feb 2014
- Location
- Sovereign State of Denial
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
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2014-10-10, 12:54 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2011
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2014-10-10, 01:48 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2012
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2014-10-11, 07:31 AM (ISO 8601)
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- Aug 2014
- Location
- Ontario, Canada
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Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
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2014-10-11, 09:07 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2013
- Location
- Where I am
Re: Helpful Unwritten Rules of DnD
As an expert on the subject, I place equal odds on an average GM who is a brony placing a unicorn as an innocent referance or as a DMPC. Use your judgement based on previous interactions.
but, If the Unicorn has wings and a much greater degree of streanth than normal, it's probably a DMPC
Rule 352495921: If the DM inserts an NPC Party Member who is bigger, stronger, or more important than the PCs, and shjows it off at every opertunity, run.
First Corollary: If the NPC PArty MEmeber is more important to the setting but is not stronger than the other PCs and works in equal partnership with the rt of the party, he's either the big bad in disguise or a plothook
Second corollary: If the NPOC party member is stronger/more skilled/better prepared than the rest of th party, but not as important and only uses his amazing power when the party is about to get TPK'd, it's just the GM watching out for you.
Corollary to second corollary: on the other hand, if the GM deliberately puts you in TPK situations to show off his DMPC,ignore the second corollary.I also answer to Bookmark and Shadow Claw.
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