RPG Addicts | We Know You're Hooked

Ok, I will start my Theif5/MU4.  I believe I have to pick spells then the DM rolls to see if I can know them? Question for the DM, can I trade one 1st level spell slot for the Prestidigitation cantrip known in 3rd edition? It duplicates most if not all of the AD&D cantrips and simplifies things. You could say I was able to research this spell on my own or with the help from someone/something else...  Below are the spells I figured would be useful but I acknowledge that I may not know enough of 1st edition D&D to realize which spells are better than others so I differ to the DM or other wiser members for advice

Mardigan, Male, Half-Elf, Age: 27 Height: 5'7  Weight: 145lbs
Class: Thief 5/ Magic-User 4 (XP 17,000/17,001)
HP: 18  /  AC: 6 (8 Leather, -2 DEX)  [url=HP, [4d4] = 14, [5d6] = 22]HP[/url] (14+22) /2 = 18
Racial: Resist Charm/Sleep 30%, Infravision 60', Notice Secret Doors 1/6, 2/6 if actively searching, 3/6 for concealed doors

STR: 11 / Open Doors 1-2, Bend Bars 2% 
DEX: 16 / +1 Reaction/ Attack, Defense -2, Open Lock +5%
CON: 13 / System Shock 85%, Rez 90%
INT: 17 / Languages +6, 75% spell knowledge, Min 8 - 14 Max/ level
WIS: 11
CHA: 13 / 5 Henchmen +5% Reaction 

(-2STR, +1 DEX, per GM Marvel's question on stats)

Languages: +6?


Thief Abilities: level 5
Backstab: x3 weapon damage 
Pick Pocket: 60%
Open Locks: 47%
Find/Remove Traps: 40%
Move Silently: 40%
Hide in Shadows: 36%
Noise Hear: 20%
Climb Walls: 90%
Read Languages: 25%

Weapon Proficiencies: 3, Non Prof. Penalty -3
Longsword
Dagger
Shortbow / Sap?

Spells: 75% 
1st: 8-14
Protection from Evil - 11%
Detect Magic - 44%
Sleep - 93%
Shield - 31%
Find Familiar - 76%
Burning Hands - 90%
Nystuls Magic Aura - 57%
Read Magic - 68%
Write - 1%
Identify - 83%
Enlarge - 35%
Featherfall - 96%
Magic Missle - 66%
Spider Climb - 40%

2nd: 8-14
Invisibility - 94%
Strength - 67%
Web - 10%
Stinking Cloud - 22%
Continual Light - 60%
Rope Trick - 27%
Mirror Image - 70%
Wizard Lock - 85%
Forget - 21%
Pyrotechnics - 45%
Levitate - 51%
Ray of Enfeeblement - 64%
Locate Object - 27%
Knock - 99%

Discription:
Mardigan is of Half-Elven origin but it is hard to tell.  His long dark hair covers his ears and he lacks the aloofness of most Elves.  He displays more human qualities, often engaging in gambling with cards, dice, and other frivolous activities.  His clothing consists of leather and a long coat embroidered with strange runes and arcane markings.  He appears to be a collector of the mysterious and arcane considering the weird assortment of items on his person.  A longsword hangs from his belt as well as many pouches and a dagger.  He doesn't smile as so much as smirk.  

Background:
If asked, Mardigan will tell you how he was left, abandoned, in a community of halflings by his parents. As the tallest member of a halfling community, he tried but never quite fit in so he embraced his outsider qualities.  He learned to play "tricks," or "thievery" as some might call it, from his halfling friends growing up.  His curiosity got the better of him one day when he decided to pilfer from a traveling mage.  That fateful day started him on his training, learning the ways of one who could wield magic.  Eventually he grew tired of washing pots and acquiring out the odd assortments of cricket legs and bat dung for his Elven master.  He asked permission to journey on his own and was given a book of spells, a sword, and words of wisdom to set him on his way.  If his story is true, it is hard to tell.  Mardigan is the consummate conman. 

The first thing he did with his newfound freedom and magical abilities was to hustle poor saps out of their coin and possessions.  Mardigan would try to stay ahead of the law, and trouble, but sometimes he was caught red handed with someone else's money through a bit of trickery.  Lucky for him, he always kept a few useful spells embroidered on his cloak to help him escape tricky situations.  If he lacked the judgement to avoid a sticky situation but he made up for it in the ability to figure a way out of it.  Thieving and magic just came natural to him.

(01-17-2018, 01:59 AM)GM Marvel Wrote: [ -> ] DM MiB said we can add on the 10% bonus to experience for having a high ability score.  You need at least a 16 in Int for Magic User and 16 for Thief, which you have.  So that would mean you actually have 19,250xp in each class (or if you want to get nitpicky you have 19,251.1xp for the class you gave the extra 1xp to when you split the 35,001xp's.     )  

As for me, I'm still deciding what classes I want to take.    I've narrowed it down to a Fighter 5/ Cleric 5; a Cleric 6; or a Fighter 4/ Cleric 4/ Magic User 4.  I feel like, if I don't play a triple classed character then I would be missing out on playing a character I might never get to play again.  

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And OMG I just found this!!!  It's Errata for the original UNEARTHED ARCANA!!!!!  

The Article states:  "Dragon magazine published errata for Unearthed Arcana in issue #103.  The article states that the changes would be incorporated into later prints, but this revision never transpired."

It even has multi-class combination charts for each race!!  Unfortunately it seems that only race that can be a Fighter/ Cleric/ Magic User is still Half-Elves.  I was hoping they would have allowed Elves to be F/C/M too. 

So DM MiB, does this look legit?  Can we use the Errata?

 Cool!  I will adjust my proto-character sheet.  Make what you want, have fun!  Humans can be all that too, they just don't get all the nice demi-human bonuses  Having poured over online AD&D material I am finally seeing why a few of my older friends always wanted to play it over 3.5 edition.  I wonder if 5th edition was able to capture a bit of the same magic.  I picked Half-Elf for my Thief/Magic User because it just seemed to fit so nicely with the race and character idea. I was very tempted to create other characters with other races but I really wanted to play a mage of sorts.  Maybe Mardigan should be an illusionist?  If there was a way to put more xp into another class over the other I would, I would much prefer to be a higher level Magic User than a Thief...

This is just a general question about the game but I don't quite get the breakup of rounds, turns, and segments.  What is a segment, turn, and round in this edition?

Actually, in 1e Humans can't multi class but they can Dual Class.  The difference being while Demihumans can level 2 or 3 classes at the same time, humans had to stop one class (never returning) and then continue with the other.  They weren't allowed to use ANY of your previous classes benefits until you caught up to your 1st class. 

My suggestion is that you stick with Magic User for this game.  Ravenloft has a lot of Undead and as I'm sure you know, illusions work very poorly against them.

The time was a little confusing.  That will be something DM MiB will have to talk about because different DM's house rule things like segments differently.  For example, I never used speed factors but DM MiB might.  Anyways, I believe (from memory) a turn a turn was 10 minutes.  There were 10 rounds in a turn and 10 segments in a round.  Then you're suppose to add the speed factor of your weapon or spell onto a d10 roll to determine initiative.  Or at least, that's how I believe it goes.  

Also different armor classes would give weapons bonuses or penalties to hit which was something else I didn't bother with because it was overly complicated.  But DM MiB might use those rules.

Thank you. Advice appreciated!!! So time is treated much like coinage in 3.5 (10segments=1turn, 10turns=1round etc.)... Makes some sense, not used to it but rules is rules When I first looked at the Rope Trick spell (duration 2turns/level) I thought, well that just plain sucks ass! Hahaha! I can appreciate weapon speed and armor modifiers (not unlike your crossbow rule with armor class in CoSA, which I like) but at the end of the day I think we can agree that too much sometimes can get in the way of the fun at times. I don't understand the attack rate, like 3/2, of some classes?

Attack rates are read as the number of attacks per so many rounds. So 3/2 means 3 attacks every 2 rounds. So you take 1 attack the first round then 2 attacks the second round. Then 1 attack the 3rd rnd and 2 attacks the 4th rnd, and so on.

Another thing that is overly complicated was distance. I believe an inch (") indoors was 10 feet and an inch outdoors was 10 yards.

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(01-17-2018, 04:08 AM)GM Marvel Wrote: [ -> ]Attack rates are read as the number of attacks per so many rounds.  So 3/2 means 3 attacks every 2 rounds.  So you take 1 attack the first round then 2 attacks the second round.  Then 1 attack the 3rd rnd and 2 attacks the 4th rnd, and so on.

Another thing that is overly complicated was distance.  I believe an inch (") indoors was 10 feet and an inch outdoors was 10 yards.  

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Mind = blown.... No wonder there are so many versions of, essentially, the same dam thing! Hahaha

Speed factors and casting times were one of the big advantages to smaller weapons and lower level spells. It's what made magic missile still a potent spell even at high levels. Remember there wasn't a lot of ways to increase weapon damage output, but spells just kept scaling.

1 turn = ten minutes, 1 round = 1 minute, segment = 6 seconds

so in-game time combat took literally ten times as long as 3.0/3.5/pathfinder

Sorry about being so negligent.  

So, cantrips.  I wanted to include them somehow.  Wasting a 1st level spell slot to use them is one way.  After looking them all over, it's all pretty much fluff.  I think just letting you pick your max in cantrips and letting you use them at-will won't hurt game balance at all.  

Go ahead and roll to see what spells you know for each level.  

The errata seems legit.  If you're using anything from it, just make a note of it on your sheet because I will forget.  

So I'm sticking with the rules for the most part.  Generally I'll pull out speed factors when it could matter, but I don't use them much since it's a pain.  I do use the bonus weapons vs. AC chart since it gives reasons to use something other than a long sword.  i have the handy combat computer wheel from Dragon to keep it easy.   If anyone wants to see combat broken down in an easy to understand format, look up ADDICT.  There is also a really scary looking flow chart out there.  

So, anybody hear anything from our firefighter?  I don't want to shut the door on him if he's still interested.