[OOC] The Tangled Vine Tavern

[CorpZeWolVe]

Originally Posted by crazyjim87

Hello i joined this site because i wanted to play d&D but i find that the site doesn't appeal to me. How can i delete the account i have here?

Thanks for taking the time to help me.

It is a bit daunting at first I'd say, and that's understandable, but if ever you'd like to put the effort forward, it is more than worth it. I've only been here a short while and find half of my tabs are consumed by this just because I want to check in on progress, this site is quite a wondrous place, but getting lost is far too easy at first, so I'll say I understand, but that might not be the issue. I recommend you atleast try a game like Eternity's End or a solo campaign.

[sammichweasel]

I would suggest a solo game before Eternity's End - there's a knowledge wall there, and a limit on system choice. The solo games are an excellent place to start, though!

[TeufelHeunden]

I would definitely agree, if you feel overwhelmed at all then a NPSG is probably best place to get the feet wet.

[HVBill]

A tall fellow with gorgeous features and flowing, golden locks fills the doorway. The sunlight shines brightly behind him and perfectly accents his olive toned skin. He yawns and stretches perfectly toned muscles, his broad and partially exposed chest heaving as it glistens with sweat. Bright white teeth greet everyone in the room and the big man steps in, from behind him comes an average looking fellow in plain clothes who smiles warmly and waves a hand.

Good afternoon, everyone! I just finished my first ever 4th edition character sheet and now that the technicalities are all squared away I am working on my backstory and physical description. I figured I would jump in here in between filling things in. Is anybody about the Tangled Vine today?

With a lop sided grin I meander in and take a seat.

[Grogg Tree]

A disheveled gnome sitting in the corner, tinkering with an object looking to be made of metal and wood, looks up at the newcomer. "Nah, today is more for the moms in the States, so I'm spending time taking care of things for the wife." With that, the wrinkled soul turns his graying eyes back to his project and gets back to work...

-GT

[zevonian]

Greetings, Bill. Or do you prefer HV?

Was character creation an easy process for you?

[HVBill]

Filling out the stats and choosing things was easy, yes. I enjoy the backstory and physical description part the most though and so that was the most fun for me. I did complete the character, have a look at him and lt me know what you think. I love feedback.

Here is the character if people want to see!

I figured I would make a caster because they're generally more involved than melee characters and I wanted to learn what I could of 4th edition as I have never played it. I really enjoy the role play anyway, and the story telling. The hack and slash and spell casting for damaging purposes or whatever is just background noise for me. hah!

Edit: Bill or HV work just fine, I'm not at all picky.

[zevonian]

I'm no 4e expert, Bill. But I do know that these Solo Games are good environments to test out how spell casting works. If your DM says your sheet looks good, then I'd say so too.

[ColdBones]

Hey everyone,

I'm fairly new around and I was wondering if anyone would have advice/insight for me.

I played some table top way back in the day, AD&D v2 (I think? Definitely with THAC0). I'm wondering which path I should take, 3.5, 4 or pathfinder. Anyone have anything to add?

My RP experience is mostly with video games (TES etc). I don't want to delve into 3 different sets of rules to try and tease out the differences. I've had a quick look around and I don't really see much discussion on the topic. If there's a thread out there that answers the question or provides some insight to help make the decision I'd appreciate someone letting me know where it is.

I'd love to sign up for a solo campaign, I'm just not sure which one to start with...

Thanks!

[sammichweasel]

Heh. It's a vitriolic topic. You'll see flames quickly if this gets out there.

Basic summary -

4E is designed for evenly scaled characters and enemies, giving things a balanced feel. You can bring out a Fighter or a Wizard, and feel like either can make an impact at any given level. It also has a slew of options, far more than any 3.5 fanboy can realistically point to (citing a option open to 1% of 1% of builds is NOT a freakin' option, durnit.).

That said, 3.5 (and Pathfinder, I lump them a bit) certainly have their selling points. Not the least of which, both 3.5 and Pathfinder have open rules sets that are published for free. 4E is kinda up in the air at the moment, but a summary of the situation puts it at "harder to get into, technically". We have a lot of 4E DMs around that are perfectly willing to help you learn, but I could certainly understand seeing it as a dealbreaker.

There's more realism at lower levels in 3.5 and Pathfinder (things are more fatal), but in general, combat's more interesting in 4E. And I hate to bring it up again, but the scaling... basically, a high-level fighter can be teleported to hell by a high-level wizard before he even knows what's going on, while a low-level wizard has a statistically high chance to lose a fight with a house cat. It's... a bit wonky.

As for discerning 3.5 from Pathfinder... there's more published material around 3.5, but Pathfinder is honestly a better version of the rules. They have very many similarities, but Pathfinder smoothed over a few of the dumber issues with 3.5 that they never got around to fixing. Plus, the Summoner class is way cool. So yeah, in the 3.5 vs Pathfinder debate... Pathfinder's probably a winner.

So there's a bunch of stuff. Any questions?

[ColdBones]

Originally Posted by sammichweasel

Heh. It's a vitriolic topic. You'll see flames quickly if this gets out there.

Basic summary -

4E is designed for evenly scaled characters and enemies, giving things a balanced feel. You can bring out a Fighter or a Wizard, and feel like either can make an impact at any given level. It also has a slew of options, far more than any 3.5 fanboy can realistically point to (citing a option open to 1% of 1% of builds is NOT a freakin' option, durnit.).

That said, 3.5 (and Pathfinder, I lump them a bit) certainly have their selling points. Not the least of which, both 3.5 and Pathfinder have open rules sets that are published for free. 4E is kinda up in the air at the moment, but a summary of the situation puts it at "harder to get into, technically". We have a lot of 4E DMs around that are perfectly willing to help you learn, but I could certainly understand seeing it as a dealbreaker.

There's more realism at lower levels in 3.5 and Pathfinder (things are more fatal), but in general, combat's more interesting in 4E. And I hate to bring it up again, but the scaling... basically, a high-level fighter can be teleported to hell by a high-level wizard before he even knows what's going on, while a low-level wizard has a statistically high chance to lose a fight with a house cat. It's... a bit wonky.

As for discerning 3.5 from Pathfinder... there's more published material around 3.5, but Pathfinder is honestly a better version of the rules. They have very many similarities, but Pathfinder smoothed over a few of the dumber issues with 3.5 that they never got around to fixing. Plus, the Summoner class is way cool. So yeah, in the 3.5 vs Pathfinder debate... Pathfinder's probably a winner.

So there's a bunch of stuff. Any questions?

Thanks so much for the response - I've been looking at the character creation tutorials here to get a feel for things.

If the 3.5e/Pathfinder literature is open/free - does that mean that if I want to get into 4E I'm going to have to buy the literature? Is there anything similar to the SRD for 4E around here?

I'm not fishing for illegal copies of it, just wondering if purchasing is really the only option. Just want to be clear about that.

Edit to add - does the AD&D 2.0 stuff matter, will one make more sense than the other based on what I've played before, or are they both too far removed from that version that it won't matter?

[sammichweasel]

2nd Edition is as far removed for 3.5 as 4E is from 3.5; they are spiritual successors, but the previous experience won't do you too much good (aside from being familiar with the basics of RPGs). That said, both 3.5 and 4E took at least a moderately logical approach, so it's easier to know math and say "okay, I get this". And there's way fewer arbitrary things (stupid kits...).

As to sources.... yeah, you kinda have to have the 4E stuff available. They have a few things available for free out there, but if you want to get into the nitty gritty aspect of things, it really helps to have the books (or a subscription to the Wizards of the Coast service) in front of you. There is no equivalent SRD. It is a decently tall hurdle, to be sure. Some DMs are totally willing to work with you and make your character, it just makes some extra work for them (although for some of us, making characters is half the fun!).

[ColdBones]

Originally Posted by sammichweasel

2nd Edition is as far removed for 3.5 as 4E is from 3.5; they are spiritual successors, but the previous experience won't do you too much good (aside from being familiar with the basics of RPGs). That said, both 3.5 and 4E took at least a moderately logical approach, so it's easier to know math and say "okay, I get this". And there's way fewer arbitrary things (stupid kits...).

As to sources.... yeah, you kinda have to have the 4E stuff available. They have a few things available for free out there, but if you want to get into the nitty gritty aspect of things, it really helps to have the books (or a subscription to the Wizards of the Coast service) in front of you. There is no equivalent SRD. It is a decently tall hurdle, to be sure. Some DMs are totally willing to work with you and make your character, it just makes some extra work for them (although for some of us, making characters is half the fun!).

Agreed - Character creation is a lot of fun for me, plus it lets me get a bit of connection, so I can get a couple of ideas in my head about how I do and do not want to play that character.

Thanks for the help, I think I'm going to go ahead and sign up in the Pathfinder thread, since I don't really want to spend any money, at the moment.

[sammichweasel]

Ces't la vie, but completely understandable ^.^

[Admin Dirk]

I am a bit late to the party here, but basically, yeah, what Sammich said.

If you don't know either system, then it comes down to:
Do you want to spend money? 4e is pretty popular, but you probably have to buy books.
No money, cheap? Go with Pathfinder. Most 3.5 folks are slowly advancing to Pathfinder, little by little, so you might as well learn PF, and enjoy it. You'll know enough to jump "back" to a 3.5 game typically, so there's nothing to lose.

And we won't even mention 5e, since we likely can't say much legally anyway.