Recent content by Constantine XI

You know, there's a reason they're called "commoners"... :) Seriously, if you want them to be proud and dignified, play them that way. I fail to see how their hit points reflects character. On one hand you seem to want to create these NPCs by the book, but insist on using average hit points...

Say what you like (or dislike...) about 4E, but the concept of minions is, in my experience, perfect for encapsulating those faceless NPCs whose fortunes lack the benefit of plot immunity. The philosophy that PCs and NPCs are not created equal is also a good one, and I for one welcome the...

I just ran a very successful session of Slaine using Green Ronin's Dragon Age mechanic with d20 Slaine elements tacked on. It was a real joy.

There's also some really atmospheric material in the old Al Qadim boxed sets Ruined Kingdoms and Cities of Bone. Some of the adventures there have a really nice Clark Ashto Smith Zothique feel to them.[/i]

This; http://xoth.net/publishing/xp1/index.htm Great S&S feel and flavour N

Given the vast sums of money I've spent on d20 Slaine (and Conan OGL), and the equally-large sums of money spent on 4E materials, and my group's reluctance to entertain playing anything other than d20/4E, and my disappointment with the black and white recycled art and lack of support for MRQ...

Farming? Really? Is that what Conan stories are about? I must be missing something. Meanwhile, NPCs will continue to function exactly as the needs of the narrative would have them function, and rules be damned. That's what we did in the old days, that's what the current D&D rules are again...

For a more cinematic feel, make them minions (as per 4E): Attacks and defences as, say 5th level characters, but only 1hp. Not everything about 4E need be dismissed out of hand. On the contrary, minions and a simple second wind/healing surge mechanic is very Conanesque.

There certainly appears to be a lot of anti-4E sentiment around here, which I can't quite understand. While I agree that the tone of 4E can seem, taken to the extreme, antithetical to Hyborian Age gaming, some of the 4E game mechanics are eminently suitable for a Conan RPG, specifically the...

Take a page out of 4E's design (sure, it's been done before, but 4E is the closest analogue): Minions. Go down after a single point of damage, but attack, defence, damage, etc, can all scale to the PCs' levels. This s what I'm planning to do for my upcomng Conan RPG set in the Westermark with...

Thanks for the feedback, Tarkan Bey. Math is an NPC I just threw together (I didn't realise there was a Math from the campaign, and haven't come across him yet). For Bardic magic, I (arbitrarily, it must be said) put one of two backgrounds: Birth-Omen OR Social-Noble, the first to reflect some...

So,I've been thinking aloud about how to implement spellcasting; there are seven classes of spells. I thought I'd tie some of these to character backgrounds, and some to training in particular skills, as follows: Bardic Magic---------Birth: Omen or Society: Noble background (CHA)...

Certainly 4E'd powers (I prefer the term 'exploits', myself, the name for martial powers) have the potential to overshadow other aspects of the game (because they're so much fun), but no so much more than have 3E/d20 feats. In fact,many of the 'powers' are simply stripped-down feats. Cleave is a...

Very nice. I like the idea of recurring villains. I ran a 5-year long Birthright Campaign (three years of game time) which featured a handful of recurring villains with whom the PCs were forced to ally on occassion, much to their chagrin. I take your point about alignment. I agree that the...