A large problem many groups have with 4E D&D is that 4E combat takes a very long time. Various methods have been proposed to fix this, such as reducing monster hp, but after some discussion we realised the best way of doing it is simply to revive the Morale system, used in 1^st and 2^nd Edition, but thrown out in 3^rd. The problem with these systems is, like the whole editions themselves, they were overly complicated; I’ve seen an attempt at adding Morale to 4E that mostly just put the 2^nd Ed system in… and it looked terrible. So, we decided to do it from the ground up: a complete, effective, and simple Morale system for 4E D&D.

Continue reading Speeding up D&D 4E Combat: Morale

Not so long ago, the 4^th Edition DMGII came out. With the general high quality of 4E splatbooks so far, this looked promising: but for those out there for whom “promising” isn’t enough, this in-depth review should give you everything you need to know about the book, helping with the critical decision of whether or not to actually go out and buy it.

Continue reading 4E Dungeon Master’s Guide 2: In-Depth Review

Area of Effect powers, or AoE, are pretty common in 4^th Edition D&D. No longer are they limited to Wizards, but can be found in the arsenal of many non-spellcasters, such as Fighters, as well as being used by many monsters. It’s thus pretty important to a understand them… and once you have that, how to use Area of Effect powers in the most optimal way possible.

Continue reading Powergaming: Understanding Area of Effect in D&D4E

In 4E D&D, choosing your Powers is a critical part of your character. Especially since you get so few, it is essential that you choose Powers that won’t let you down. So, how do we decide which Powers to select?

Continue reading Powergaming: Choosing the best powers for your character

Today we begin the first of a series of (hopefully weekly…) articles discussing various powergaming strategies in D&D, both 3.5 and 4E. But what do we really mean by powergaming? How can we discuss details without understanding it? Well, that’s where this article starts. What is it? Is it good or bad? How far do you go?

Continue reading D&D Powergaming: Introduction

I was a bit apprehensive going into this review, because, whilst the 4E splat books have been pretty darn good so far, some of the 3.0 and 3.5 Monster Manuals were… um… not that great. Fortunately, as you will see, I was pleasantly surprised by this book.

Some monsters which might have been nice in the MM1 appear in this book, like Metallic Dragons and the Rust Monster. There are also some real classic classic monsters, from 1^st and 2^nd Edition, which kinda dropped off the radar in 3^rd Edition.

Continue reading 4E Monster Manual 2 In-Depth Review and Analysis

(Read our review of the Monster Manual II here…)

And about time, too.

This is a review of the 4E PHBII. For a review of the 3.5 PHBII: it’s arguably the best 3.5 book in existence. Anyway, on to the point.

4^th edition leads itself nicely into splat books, because the Power system limits what abilities are available. On the flip side, the core 4E books are balanced a lot better than the 3.5 ones. Either way, the PHBII is, mostly, pretty much in line with the core books, and shouldn’t endanger a campaign with some broken ability or some such.

One very nice side note about the PHBII: the back of the book has the revised Stealth rules, which were errata’d.

Continue reading D&D 4E Players Handbook 2 In Depth Review

As some of you may have noticed, Monster of the Week has lapsed. In order to keep things fresh and interesting, I have decided to discontinue it for the moment, and focus on providing a greater variety of articles.

Some articles to look forward to in the next week or two:

Continue reading Upcoming articles; Monster of the Week Index

Basilisks are, like many D&D creatures, a solid mythological creature. Check the Wikipedia entry, it’s quite good. What’s particularly interesting is, apparently, a Cockatrice is a variant of a Basilisk, with more bird than lizard. Anyway, the important thing is, in D&D, they’re all reptiles. They’ve got eight legs (one of a variety of mythological descriptions), and can kill with a gaze. Specifically, D&D Basilisks turn you to stone, a technique known to us gamers as petrification. Basically, think of a crocodile with 8 legs that can look at you and you die.

Continue reading Monster of the Week: Basilisks

Aboleths are large and intelligent marine creatures not to be confused with an Axolotl, another strange fishy creature also starting with ‘A’. However, rather than having legs, an Aboleth has psionic powers and another nasty stuff. They look something like this:

Continue reading Monster of the Week: Aboleth