Disposable talk:Edge of the Sky

I'm good for the 9AM pancake breakfast as well. Also, I have some star wars mini's I can bring over as well for us to use. --Askewnotion 14:04, 6 October 2010 (UTC)

Thoughts on True20

Did not use Wealth or Reputation, and with the except of a couple of core abilities and one feat, the gameday used only the True20 Core Revised book and Bestiary.

The two areas that I was most interested in evaluating were the damage and spellcasting systems.

Damage and Recovery

I simply loved the damage mechanics for True20. I felt that it added drama and dynamism to the game for both sides of the fence. If a single blow can kill a PC, PC behaviors change. Fortunately there is Conviction in case of a bad Toughness roll. I would change one thing in regards to the Wounded state and that change would be to remove "Shaken as long as wounded". I understand why it's there but don't feel that it's needed.

I really liked how armor applied to the Toughness save, how the Combat bonus applied to Defense, and I especially liked having separate Dodge and Parry defenses despite that distinction proving irrelevant at the gameday.

--Randy (Talk) 22:16, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

My only complaint was that it felt complicated. I'm not saying it was, just that it felt complicated with the save-vs-damage. Pre-calcing weapon damage based off of 15 would probably resolve that. --t3knomanser 23:03, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

I agree completely. Instead of damage +5 it should be noted as damage DC20, especially since the base 15 never changes. --Randy (Talk) 23:28, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

Spellcasting

Skill-based spellcasting can be tricky however I feel that True20 did a good job coming close to a solution. The fatigue mechanism worked to slow down spellcasting, as evidenced by a couple of combats where the full caster just sat back and used a shotgun while waiting for time to pass. The power of spellcasting will depend on how often encounters are set up. Losing all penalties to fatigue within an hour will unlikely work in most campaigns as it's recovered too quickly.

This spellcasting system is worth exploring further.

--Randy (Talk) 22:16, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

I really liked the casting system. I usually don't like playing casters in my first-time-out in any system, but this worked really well. I think the hour cool-down actually works really well, even in a regular campaign. The powers available aren't quite as flashy as standard D&D spells, for starters, and because the fatiguing saves stack up very quickly, you're never going to want to use more than a handful of powers in a combat. Since most powers seem to be for one target and scale up from that, I think the balance works.

Also, keep in mind- your power-fatigue count doesn't fade after an hour. You have to go an entire hour without using any fatiguing powers. I think if you changed that to "a whole hour without using any powers", you'd get a good balance. --t3knomanser

Good suggestion. In a campaign I would start out using it without modification, but with a keen eye towards balance. --Randy (Talk) 23:29, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

Other notes

Conviction: An excellent mechanic that is needed for the damage system to work without being overly lethal. It has a very open role in the system with many applications and I think it enhances the drama in favor of the PCs.

Grappling: One of the PCs was a grappler so I could see True20 grappling in action. Very little difference from d20 though the rules for it are a little more clear. When succeeding on a grapple check you choose from a list of effects, such as unarmed damage, pin, throw, etc. Pins are only held for one-round. You also do not move into a different square while grappling.

--Randy (Talk) 22:16, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

Grappling didn't feel as tacked on as it does in traditional D20. Not because the grappling rules changed, but because the regular combat rules did. Regular combat is attack-save. So is grappling. It feels better, as a result. --t3knomanser 23:03, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

I agree, it felt right. In d20 grappling is used as a method of controlling opponents. True20's damage system helped keep opponents under control by robbing them of a full round of actions when wounded, thus reducing the need for grappling.

One thing to remember about the grappler character is that it was very cheesed out for grappling but wasn't as problematic as when a d20 character is cheesed out for grappling. --Randy (Talk) 23:29, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

Cert-style Equipment: Using certs for weapons, armor, and equipment worked out great. Using pennies for Conviction was also good, unless you got Canadian Conviction. ;-)

Conclusion

I really liked the system. I am nearly certain that I'll be using it for my next regular campaign. --Randy (Talk) 22:16, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

Favorite moments

Hacker to the ship's computer expert, the caster: "What operating system are you running?"

Caster: "Excel"

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Skillmonkey: "I collect up a bunch of soda. Now I'm looking for the candy aisle..."

DM: "Are you really looking for Pop Rocks?"

Skillmonkey: "ROCKETCART!"

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Medbays doors open suddenly and a huge man with claws attacks the captain. Then the doors close again. Everyone waits for the monster to hit the Handicap button on the door again.

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The captain and the monstrous humanoid startled each other and out of reflex the captain stabbed it with his sword, crippling it as the sniper killed it. It had medpatches in it's hands.

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"We're rescuing an intelligent dolphin? What is this, SeaQuest?" ::collective groan::