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[Randallw]

Maybe the Monster Manual to help you learn more about your foes.

I'm not going to say you can't have the Monster Manual, but during the first adventure I made a point not to look at the Minotaur stuff.

[Fyron]

Randallw said:

I'm not going to say you can't have the Monster Manual, but during the first adventure I made a point not to look at the Minotaur stuff.

Yeah... it is pretty shady (for a player) to look in the monster manual to find all the strengths and weaknesses of a monster... Cheating, IMO... It greatly detracts from the whole role playing aspect.

[Randallw]

As always FFN has a funny strip for this occasion. Background: the guy on the webcam lives in Alaska.

http://archive.gamespy.com/comics/no...ffn/ffn064.htm

[Rasorow]

While I agree with you as far as you took players reading the Monster Manual... the problem is DMs dont generally make allowances for what characters would know that players dont. For example my characters universally have been ranger/clerics with undead as the favored enemy. Not one DM has bothered to ever explained the effect of weapons (sharp vs blunt) on skeletons a common undead that my character would have studied at some point either as a ranger to kill them more effectively or as a cleric as part of basic religion class. So as a player, I read the Monster Manual and had to decide for myself what the character would know.

As a DM my solution was to customize the monsters so the characters never quite knew what they were facing though I never strayed to far from the generalities in the book. The key is the book is only a guide... House Rules are invited - as long as the DM disclosing them in the beginning and sticks to them.

Rasorow

[Fyron]

the problem is DMs dont generally make allowances for what characters would know that players dont... Not one DM has bothered to ever explained the effect of weapons (sharp vs blunt) on skeletons...

Interesting. The group I played with always handled such things.

[Cyclop]

There are sooooo many details in the Player's Handbook alone, that it is hard for any group or DM to ensure each player knows them before or exactly when they are needed.
I do see a difference in opinions on the Monster Manual knoweledge as I always viewed that information as something most of the character's in the game we are playing should have some knowledge of their environment and foes. Especially a hostile one. IMO that's like someone living in Alaska, uncertain what local wildlife could be dangerous and then not knowing what a threat an African Lion could be. IMO just reading the Monster Manual for a new person helps understand the game more. Just reading what the beast can or can't do doesn't in any way imply how the DM will use them in a setting.

[Randallw]

A recent Dragon I read had an article on player irony ie. the itony of a player knowing something his player wouldn't know. As for not explaining what is happening, I consider myself a bit of a writer and relish detailing events, not for me "you attack, you hit, 4 pts dmg".

Lastly I unfortunately have something I need to say.
A few months ago I had Iritis (which if you are familiar with will know it is far from pleasant). Last week my other eye started to hurt, and as I dreaded I have Iritis again. Last time I went to the specialist for half a day, the next day I had tests, and the 3rd day I went back to the specialist. Today is the first appointment, so on wednesday (which to you all is tuesday night) I will most probably have to visit my specialist again. If the appointment is in the morning then I can't join you. If it is in the early afternoon, then I can't stay till the end. Since the start of our session would be divying up treasure we have I'll have to postpone starting my campaign, sorry.

[Cyclop]

All I can say is take care of your vision and do whatever is necessary to maintain it. I myself live at the optomatrist (sp?) and have had 7 surgeries on my left eye (two of them corneal transplants). Needless to say I have vision in only one eye and dread the day anything happens to my right one. Hence the name Cyclop, my only humor from reality.
My support is with you Randall...

[Randallw]

Hey is there a mythological monster with only one ear?. I might change my nickname. I did think the other day when it started if given the choice between vision or hearing I could say "can't I just have half of each?" (as I am already deaf in one ear, I could trick them. ). Given a choice though I would say "lose the ears/ear", as hearing is little consolation to not being able to read. I will not be at the specialist on wednesday after all though. Instead of my lense glueing to my Iris (thus Iritis, and believe me it hurts just as much as it sounds) it didn't progress so far. I put this down to my running off to the doctor when I woke up this morning with a knife in my eye, instead of sitting around for a week wondering what this peculiar feeling in my eye was (and then waking up the day I have to sit on a ferry for 8 hours, with a knife in my eye). This isn't my only problem though. I can't smell due to lots of operations on my nose as a child (flowers and trees are just annoying green things to me that irritate my allergies) , and I was already partly deaf until I developed menieres disease, with my ears also having lots of operations (you should see the scar behind my ear ). Its sort of a tradeoff for being double jointed and otherwise physically superior to normal people .

[Randallw]

I usually avoid double posting but I want to make a seperate post so Rasarow will se what I have to say.

Ras, you can certainly be a cleric, in fact it will be good for us to have one. You can choose a god like Ehlonna, or another, from Cyclops world (which as Greyhawk is stock D&D mythology I think) and we will make part of the adventure your coping for the time being with being outside the gods influence (although if youve seen one Goddess of the Forest you've seen them all....or have you ). Wulf is coming along, as apparently is Draknor now . I'll play him as an NPC (Wulf not Draknor), now that Grull is a PC.