Episode 4 is available already on geekandsundry for more binge-watching.
As much as I am enjoying the production of Titansgrave, go watch Critical Role. It is an amazing line up of voice acting talent (including Laura Bailey) playing D&D 5e, and Matthew Mercer’s DMing puts Wheaton’s to shame.
I only started watching it because I never went to geekandsundry’s website until Titansgrave (to watch the episode before a Youtube release), and I can’t stop.
I’m planning on watching a bunch of this this weekend. Can’t wait!
I still need to watch Titansgrave; thanks for the reminder.
(I read an account of Sterling’s D&D games from Warren Spector, now a gaming legend in his own right. Apparently downright awesome. )
catch up on Space Janitors while you’re there!
As an old school role-playing geek, I kiss the ground that Wil Wheaton walks upon.
Lost me there.
Yeah, I know you. You bitch about 500+ page rulebooks while pushing FATE hard for its slim 300+page rulebook. 5e and FATE have the same level of complexity, and both have good math behind the game - 5e just sports the name brand and is saddled with long spell lists and race rules. FATE and 5e cost the same amount for the hardcover books ($25), and both have free versions online. The AGE system Wheaton is using is not available for purchase and will likely cost $60 just like green ronin’s other games.
Would you feel better knowing it’s a Pathfinder conversion to 5e?
One 300 page rulebook. How many 500 page rulebooks do you need to run D&D? At least two (DMG and PH and realistically you’ll need the MM unless you’re making up all of your own monsters) so comparing size and cost that way isn’t really honest. $120 of rulebooks versus $30.
Truth be told, the rules for FATE can be (and are) summarized for players on a bookmark (which is often given out at conventions…).
Full rules (not just a version of them) can be downloaded for free at http://www.evilhat.com/home/fate-core-downloads/ as well and exist under an open Creative Commons license. You don’t have to pay a dime to have full copies of all of the FATE rules or to publish your own creations based on them.
Where is the PDF of the D&D rules I can buy and put on my iPad so I don’t have to lug 1500 pages of hardcovers to gaming sessions? What license are they freely available under?
Dungeons and Dragons exists trading on the nostalgia of old geeks (like you and me, I suspect) who grew up playing it 30+ years ago.
As to Pathfinder, I don’t actually know anyone who plays that.
FATE has no DMG or MM equivalent, it is only rules for building characters and running games just like the PHB. The MM and the DMG are support for the “core” rules in the PHB you don’t need either but they have good info. The DMG is pretty much universally good DMing advice for fantasy worlds and custom NPC classes and variant rules. The UA on the D&D site also has more material beyond the DMG for free. The MM is converting the D&D monsters to the system, and is the least needed when you know the system.
I will say the lake of a PDF rule book is annoying but easily circumvented by downloading one of the several scans floating around which isn’t an issue if you own the hard copy. I do wish they had the “printer friendly” version of the book on pdf without the art or textured background.
I only defend 5e because it is the first D&D where you don’t need all the books and the rules are lighter and faster. It’s easier to customize and build fun games and doesn’t get in the way like 3.5 did or be so combat focused like 4e. And pathfinder is a-whole-nother topic. They’re systems to know if you are looking for games outside of just your immediate group of friends since 5e and Pathfinder are the most popular systems by far.
And yes, I know the systems even though I am currently only running a RuneQuest 6 game (using the Star Wars rules no less) because I’m interested in the hobby. If I had to rank things I want to play next 5e isn’t even top 5 (dogs in the vineyard, engine heart, traveler, and one shots like Everyone is John or Small Towns), but if I was going to do a fantasy game again it would look a lot like 5e.
I’m partially fucking with you. I did buy the 5th Edition rulebooks to give it a try again. That said, I’ve talked my group into Dungeon World for a one shot but haven’t been able to talk them into D&D again and we all grew up playing it. I’ll talk them into it eventually but I’m not looking forward to slogging through the PH and DMG enough to explain the rules to others (as opposed to a reference) . Dungeon World seems to be our likely “go to” game for dungeon adventuring with a side trip to Torchbearer.
The lack of a PDF kills me though (and, yeah, I have the pirated ones too). I buy most rulebooks as PDFs and put them on my tablet. That way I don’t lug shit everywhere and can read through things when I want (the same with my comic books).
My group just started a “Worlds in Peril” campaign last week and that’s an Apocalypse World-derived supers game. We play a campaign two Sundays a month (for eight years now) and do pickup games, often one shots or FAE scenarios, on Tuesday nights if we can muster a quorum of interested folks to play. We did play “Everyone is John” recently, which was a riot.
As to Pathfinder, in Oakland and Berkeley, the two big local gameshops host lots of games and game weekends. Almost everyone is playing non-D&D and non-Pathfinder games at these (though I’m sure Pathfinder lurks in every weekend). Big Bad Con happens locally every year as a gaming convention in Oakland and most of the games there are, again, indie games. I really don’t know anyone on a personal level who plays Pathfinder.
I like DW a lot, but I like that medium-crunch level of rules like FATE, BRP, or AD&D/5e. I have tried to maintain a DW campaign and I found it to be an excellent introduction to pen and paper types, but it does lack some customization of the crunch that I enjoy. I will say DW builds great DMs unlike a lot of systems. Though I really enjoy the recent trend of DM/GM emphasis in rules, where things like Numenera make it clear you guide the game and not rules lawyering.
I will say I wish fantasy systems broke from classes more often.
… you guys are nerds*
* and I love it
Started watching a couple days ago and have been waiting with baited breath for todays episode. Moarfrothy suds!
I have this vision of a worm hanging out of your mouth. Pendant’s Observation: “bated” breath as in “abated.”
I’m kind of surprised that @doctorow and Mark haven’t written a long glowing post about both FATE and Dungeon World since both are CC licensed with their rules even available in HTML (such as http://www.dungeonworldsrd.com and http://fate-srd.com ). Hell, Dungeon World even has a github repo at https://github.com/Sagelt/Dungeon-World .
Actually, I’ve hung a meal worm from my tonsils to catch the man that lives in my mouth, so… 
Is this kid appropriate (7 year old with high tolerance for “scary” things, but not violence)? I could watch this on my own to see, but I would rather not spend the time as it’s not really my kind of thing.
I watched the first episode today.
It mostly consists of hip-geek types narrating their character’s actions, with Wheaton explaining mechanics (with the help of screen-overs).
There are some super-minimal-animations of monsters being beheaded and such. More “enhanced illustrations” than animation.
