tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post1082388411948396235..comments2024-03-18T20:22:06.331-04:00Comments on GROGNARDIA: What's His Story?James Maliszewskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00341941102398271464noreply@blogger.comBlogger41125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-9614640785406262692023-08-17T12:20:26.318-04:002023-08-17T12:20:26.318-04:00could it be a Brownie about to be eaten by a regul...could it be a Brownie about to be eaten by a regular old bullfrog? Eat2surfhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06915835894216789711noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-16418999090819533432011-07-27T14:46:37.718-04:002011-07-27T14:46:37.718-04:00That's no elf and that's not time stop. A ...That's no elf and that's not time stop. A magic user has shaped changed into a giant frog and is now turning the tables on a hostile brownie or gnome. <br /><br />I believe this is a play on how magic users were not formidable in melee and even a tiny fey could take one out. Well, here is a surprise for that cocky little guy.cibethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16815626047653230637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-6482466375950513222010-09-09T19:33:39.256-04:002010-09-09T19:33:39.256-04:00I've always thought of this as a play on the o...I've always thought of this as a play on the old "shapechanged into a frog" trope - instead of being unwillingly turned into a frog, the spellcaster has turned into a GIANT frog on purpose.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-73561514153857667662009-06-09T00:29:58.830-04:002009-06-09T00:29:58.830-04:00I agree that it is actually a Gnome in the picture...I agree that it is actually a Gnome in the picture.<br /><br /><br />Wierd though.. I also stared at that picture a lot and wondered what was going on. <br /><br />It has been a long time but wasn't there a shapeshift spell on the same page? I imagined the frog was a magic user that shapeshifted.mishmashhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09160981085942111351noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-60687285886314116262008-10-28T04:46:00.000-04:002008-10-28T04:46:00.000-04:00The viewer - an 18th level Magic-User PC - has jus...The viewer - an 18th level Magic-User PC - has just cast Time Stop in order to prevent his Pixie familiar being eaten by the giant frog.Simonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01173759805310975320noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-63629583487283863192008-07-26T03:36:00.000-04:002008-07-26T03:36:00.000-04:00What makes you think that's an elf? Does he have p...<I>What makes you think that's an elf? Does he have pointed ears? (I cannot tell from the online picture, and don't have a copy of the combined D1-2 module handy).</I><BR/><BR/>1- Well, even from the viewer's distance, the figure looks smallish compared to a human. <BR/><BR/>2- He's also casting an attack spell and holding a wand; I'd wager he's a magic-user. <BR/><BR/>3- And that looks like chainmail hanging down over his jumblies from under that tunic of the stereotypically woodsy colors of brown and green.<BR/><BR/>Small + magical spells + chainmail + woodsy = Elf [or half-elf].The_Mythhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10621186404597424842noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-26416691463012565532008-07-18T09:17:00.000-04:002008-07-18T09:17:00.000-04:00Robert - thanks for the response, I will. In the m...Robert - thanks for the response, I will. In the meantime, OT, I thought James might be interested in (maybe annoyed by) this:<BR/>http://www.websnark.com/archives/2008/06/i_roll_to_disbe.html<BR/><BR/>He makes the point that 4e is the tabletop adaptation of WoW, and he explains exactly how (that seems completely misguided as a marketing strategy to my addled old brain, but what do I know?). Here's where I get off the train:<BR/><I>This is a game of combat -- as much as the original D&D was, if not more so. This is not a game of out-of-combat nuanced roleplay and complicated social mores. This is a game where your character is an optimized killing machine. Yeah, you can take intimidate or bluff if you really want to, but honestly, you have a charisma score, do you really need more than that? Especially when most of the time, your intimidate skill will take a back seat to your Riposte Strike at-will power or a well timed Shadow Wasp Strike. Your characters will feel most at home in a darkened corridor, decimating all around them... Thieves are now rogues and are way better at killing than thieving (there's nothing that even says you need to take thief skills)... it makes sense, now, that the gnomes are absent from the game right now. In the older game, their best trick was being illusionists... and there is no illusionist, and unless 'shadow' will be an illusionist power source, there's not going to be. Illusions don't really fit the structure of the new game -- they're not used much as it is, and they don't fall into the same role structure as the others. </I><BR/><BR/>So it sounds like the plan is to reduce the world to the kinds of interactions you can get from a computer, making most of the scenery non-interactive, reducing the player options to combat and leveling up. Only without the graphics. I don't think I get it.richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13517340075234811323noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-47255975238227843002008-07-16T08:54:00.000-04:002008-07-16T08:54:00.000-04:00As I understand Gary’s explanation... Gary conceiv...As I understand Gary’s explanation... Gary conceived of the game world as being human dominated. Logically, with their long lives and other advantages over humans, demihumans should be dominant. By putting level caps on demihumans, human can then logically dominate the game world.<BR/><BR/>But I’m not sure I ever really understood his explanation. Go hit his Q&A threads at ENWorld or DF to read it from the horse’s mouth.Roberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16733274876782876659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-15360929381754570922008-07-16T07:13:00.000-04:002008-07-16T07:13:00.000-04:00Can anyone enlighten me about the rationale behind...Can anyone enlighten me about the rationale behind level caps? <BR/><BR/>I don't think it can be anything to do with game balance, since the concept of the level seems itself to be a balancing device - it's a property you can apply to an adventure, which sets an appropriate threat for a particular party, and a metric (or even an exchange rate) you can apply to PCs to make sure everyone in the party is of roughly equivalent power.<BR/><BR/>So what's the idea? Did EGG just think it was silly to have certain races involved in certain kinds of adventures? Is this a kind of continuum between the statuses of PC (capable of progress - <I>historical</I>, if you like) and monster (unchanging, consistent - in Said's terms, <I>Oriental</I>)?richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13517340075234811323noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-30281443453020469112008-07-13T08:20:00.000-04:002008-07-13T08:20:00.000-04:00The shapechange possibility seems to have been cov...The <I>shapechange</I> possibility seems to have been covered pretty exhaustively. But for what it's worth, I always assumed that this was an illustration of that spell in action. In my interpretation, the little guy is a brownie, and he has picked up the material component the archmage used to cast the spell (which the rules state is dropped when the spell is cast, IIRC). The foolish brownie has threatened to break it (thus ending the spell), and the frog/archmage is gently reminding him that he can beat the snot out of a brownie even in human form. It also seemed to me that the frog was grasping for something and speaking (entirely possible), and has just lost patience. "Now!"<BR/><BR/>Sorry for the ramble :).metamorphosissigmahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18163514061779555557noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-40773187298586229272008-07-13T01:27:00.000-04:002008-07-13T01:27:00.000-04:00As always, you make very good points, Allan.As always, you make very good points, Allan.Roberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16733274876782876659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-86140776332717613582008-07-11T19:11:00.000-04:002008-07-11T19:11:00.000-04:00Yeah, but Gary was always extremely stingy about a...<I>Yeah, but Gary was always extremely stingy about ability score increases. I always read that as him saying that this was a specific area where he felt wishes could be abused rather than a guideline that should be generalized to wishes applied to other areas.</I><BR/><BR/>Venturing a bit off topic here, but it's fun since James hasn't provided us with new fodder for discussion (hint, hint :D ):<BR/><BR/>While Gary outlines 10 wishes to raise ability scores from 16 and on-higher in the DMG, there were plenty of other ways to raise them in the Lake Geneva campaigns, including magic pools, forbidden fruit, moving levers, and other various random-ish effects of the dungeon environs, divine intervention, DM whimsy, etc. So, I think that the DMG text was written to discourage people from "wasting" wishing on simple ability score additions vs. on much more important things like escaping encounters, raising PCs, etc., etc. Wishes were also much more common in OD&D than in AD&D, so acquiring 10 wishes is by no means impossible. Perhaps Trent Foster will chime in here, since he's written some good stuff about wishes several times :D <BR/><BR/>Allan.<BR/><BR/>Allan.grodoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11800184312511280050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-60855285543988992042008-07-11T10:16:00.000-04:002008-07-11T10:16:00.000-04:00“Remember that to raise an ability score abo...“<B>Remember that to raise an ability score above 16 requires 10 wishes, with each individual wish raising it by only 1/10 needed for the next score.</B>”<BR/><BR/>Yeah, but Gary was always extremely stingy about ability score increases. I always read that as him saying that this was a specific area where he felt wishes could be abused rather than a guideline that should be generalized to wishes applied to other areas.<BR/><BR/>Level caps he kept increasing. (oD&D → AD&D; PHB → UA.) Plus, he allowed for individuals to exceed the level caps based on ability scores.<BR/><BR/>Plus, ability scores and levels are very different scales. Going from an 18 to a 20 in an ability score is moving from mortal-range to godlike. Levelling from 18 to 20 is well within mortal capabilities. And allowing a wish to raise an individual’s level cap by one level still requires that individual to <I>earn</I> the new level itself.<BR/><BR/>But, of course, Steven’s analysis perhaps makes the whole discussion moot.Roberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16733274876782876659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-77496044317244455302008-07-11T09:21:00.000-04:002008-07-11T09:21:00.000-04:00So, the most likely conclusion seems to be that we...<I>So, the most likely conclusion seems to be that we have an illustration here of shape change. Any other conclusion requires this illustration to be unusual in several ways at once, which is unlikely.</I><BR/><BR/>I like the cut of your jib, sir. I bow before your superior exegetical skills.James Maliszewskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00341941102398271464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-32665899091805282402008-07-11T09:20:00.000-04:002008-07-11T09:20:00.000-04:00(That’s not explicitly verboten, is it?)Explicitly...<I>(That’s not explicitly verboten, is it?)</I><BR/><BR/>Explicitly, no, but my gut tells me that Gygax wouldn't approve of such a use. Remember that to raise an ability score above 16 requires <I>10 wishes</I>, with each individual wish raising it by only 1/10 needed for the next score.James Maliszewskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00341941102398271464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-12883980422721255132008-07-11T09:17:00.000-04:002008-07-11T09:17:00.000-04:00Oddly enough, the jpg file is labeled "brownie"......<I>Oddly enough, the jpg file is labeled "brownie"...</I><BR/><BR/>That was my doing. I make so many scans that I need an easy way to remember them by name alone and if I'd called it "elf," I'd never remember what it was :)<BR/><BR/>He does look like a brownie, but it's very unclear from context what he is.James Maliszewskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00341941102398271464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-76857666747033785132008-07-11T09:15:00.000-04:002008-07-11T09:15:00.000-04:00He also bears no resemblence to the elves in the M...<I>He also bears no resemblence to the elves in the MM and elsewhere in the PHB and DMG. :)</I><BR/><BR/>That's not entirely true. The wood elves in the <I>Monster Manual</I> bear a strong resemblance to him, as they have very large and exaggerated ears and rather "pointed" features. You're right that it's not identical, but there is a "family resemblance."James Maliszewskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00341941102398271464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-41528302186838715092008-07-10T15:30:00.000-04:002008-07-10T15:30:00.000-04:00The solution is elementary. Recall that Lawful Goo...The solution is elementary. Recall that Lawful Good magic-users can have Brownie familiars. The picture is of a Brownie familiar narrowly saved by its off-screen master by way of a Temporal Stasis spell. The humor is that the Brownie held up his hand in a desperation gesture and the frog magically froze at the same time. But actually it was the archmage behind him with the 9th level spell the whole time.Calithenahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14783899060873651832noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-83849235219418187182008-07-10T15:28:00.000-04:002008-07-10T15:28:00.000-04:00It's actually a great time to be a fan of old RPGs...<I>It's actually a great time to be a fan of old RPGs.</I><BR/><BR/>I'll second that! :D<BR/><BR/>Allan.grodoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11800184312511280050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-28852138408719750432008-07-10T14:50:00.000-04:002008-07-10T14:50:00.000-04:00“I doubt I could find these books anywhere&r...“<B>I doubt I could find these books anywhere</B>”<BR/><BR/>Actually, the books are not hard to find at all. Around here, you can find a copy in just about every second-hand book-store.<BR/><BR/>Failing that, there's <BR/><A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/Players-Handbook-Advanced-Dungeons-Dragons/dp/0935696016/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1215714655&sr=8-1" REL="nofollow">Amazon</A>, <A HREF="http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?isbn=0935696016&sts=t&x=45&y=18" REL="nofollow">Abe Books</A>, <A HREF="http://www.alibris.com/search/books/isbn/0935696016" REL="nofollow">A Libris</A>, and <A HREF="http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?sofocus=bs&sbrftog=1&dfsp=1&catref=C6&from=R40&satitle=ad%26d+players+handbook&sacat=-1%26catref%3DC6&bs=Search&sargn=-1%26saslc%3D2&sadis=200&fpos=78664&sabfmts=1&saobfmts=insif&ftrt=1&ftrv=1&saprclo=&saprchi=&fsop=1%26fsoo%3D1" REL="nofollow">eBay</A>. Not to mention places like Noble Knight and the Hit Pointe.<BR/><BR/>Or you can buy <A HREF="http://paizo.com/store/byCompany/w/wizardsOfTheCoast/byProductType/roleplayingGames/dungeonsDragons/aDAndD1/rulebooks/v5748btpy7mew" REL="nofollow">a PDF copy</A> from Paizo.<BR/><BR/>It's actually a great time to be a fan of old RPGs.Roberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16733274876782876659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-28072069416926396662008-07-10T13:13:00.000-04:002008-07-10T13:13:00.000-04:00Hm. Steven's hypothesis seems logical. It'd be eas...Hm. Steven's hypothesis seems logical. It'd be easier for me to follow if I had the book in question. (unlikely to ever happen, I entered the hobby late, I doubt I could find these books anywhere, and honestly, I'm fairly happy with third edition, though I do find this blog fascinating and illuminating in many ways, even if I disagree with a few of James' opinions.)Rachel Ghoulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04765944479141792643noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-18415616906892953212008-07-10T04:34:00.000-04:002008-07-10T04:34:00.000-04:00Immediately beneath this piece of artwork are the ...<I>Immediately beneath this piece of artwork are the descriptions of two 9th-level magic-user spells, temporal stasis and time stop.</I><BR/><BR/>Let's go through the whole spell section and look at the location of the illustrations:<BR/><BR/>p.47: Below <I>locate object</I>, above <I>prayer</I>, depicts <I>locate object</I>.<BR/><BR/>p.50: In the middle of <I>insect plague</I>, depicts <I>insect plague</I>.<BR/><BR/>p.56: In the middle of <I>fire trap</I>, depicts <I>fire trap</I>.<BR/><BR/>p.57: Below <I>warp wood</I>, depicts <I>warp wood</I>.<BR/><BR/>p.65: At the bottom of the page below <I>dancing lights</I> and <I>erase</I>, depicts <I>dancing lights</I>.<BR/><BR/>p.68: Below <I>read magic</I> and above <I>shield</I>, depicts <I>shield</I>.<BR/><BR/>p.69: Below <I>write</I>, relates to <I>write</I>.<BR/><BR/>p.71: Below <I>mirror image</I>, depicts <I>mirror image</I>.<BR/><BR/>p.81: Below <I>Leomund's secret chest</I>, above <I>magic jar</I>, depicts <I>Leomund's secret chest</I>. (He's holding a little replica chest, as per <I>Leomund's secret chest</I>, not a large gem or crystal.)<BR/><BR/>p.83: In the middle of <I>enchant and item</I>, related to <I>enchant and item</I><BR/><BR/>p.90: Below <I>Otto's irresistible dance</I>, depicts <I>Otto's irresistible dance</I>.<BR/><BR/>p.92: Below <I>gate</I> and above <I>imprisonment</I>, related to <I>gate</I>.<BR/><BR/>p.93: The picture in question, below <I>shape change</I>, above <I>temporal stasis</I>.<BR/><BR/>p.97: Below <I>massmorph</I>, depicts <I>massmorph</I>.<BR/><BR/>p.98: Below <I>demi-shadow monsters</I>, above <I>major creation</I>, depicts <I>demi-shadow monsters</I>.<BR/><BR/>So, in thirteen of the fifteen cases, the art certainly has as its subject spell which has text immediately above the illustration. In the fourteenth, the art's subject is the spell immediately below the illustration. Accordingly, it is basically certain that the illustration in question is either of <I>shape change</I> or <I>temporal stasis</I>; it is <B>not</B> a depiction of <I>time stop</I>. Further, the overwhelming rule strongly suggests that it depicts the spell immediately above it, <I>shape change</I>, not the spell below it.<BR/><BR/>That much exegesis we can reach based on the position of the illustration. With that, we then note that if the illustration depicts a magic-user who has cast <I>shape change</I> to take the form of the frog in order to attack the elf, the illustration conforms to the rules of the AD&D game. To reach the conclusion that the illustration is of the elf casting <I>temporal stasis</I>, however, we add to the exception to the usual positioning rule the necessary belief that the illustration be erroneous, depicting something (nearly) impossible in the game.<BR/><BR/>(There is the qualification of "nearly" above because one exception does exist. In principle, a human magic-user of sufficient level to cast <I>temporal stasis</I> could use magic to alter his form to appear to be an elf, with either <I>polymorph self</I> or <I>shape change</I>. This seems unlikely because no other illustration in the spells section seems to show the effects of two spells, and it would be unwise for the caster to retain elf form when threatened by a giant frog.)<BR/><BR/>So, the most likely conclusion seems to be that we have an illustration here of <I>shape change</I>. Any other conclusion requires this illustration to be unusual in several ways at once, which is unlikely.Stevenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05138730966226244399noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-52126057314128077332008-07-06T23:02:00.000-04:002008-07-06T23:02:00.000-04:00Perhaps the elf has used one or more wishes to exc...Perhaps the elf has used one or more wishes to exceed the level cap. (That’s not explicitly verboten, is it?)<BR/><BR/>Not having a somatic component does not <I>prevent</I> gesturing.Roberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16733274876782876659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-57025695207679162802008-07-06T22:56:00.000-04:002008-07-06T22:56:00.000-04:00My impression is that the elf isn't casting a spel...My impression is that the elf isn't casting a spell, but rather saying "Gah!", holding his hand up and stumbling backwards in a vain attempt to avert his impending death.noismshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09933436762608669966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-63429614752413169642008-07-06T22:40:00.000-04:002008-07-06T22:40:00.000-04:00I have recently seen some professional 3rd/4th Ed ...<I>I have recently seen some professional 3rd/4th Ed art for elves at the artist's website (I can't recall his name). I was amazed to notice both the male and female elves on a racial "police line-up" where considerably taller and more buffed than their human counterparts, so much so they looked like professional Nordic bodybuilders. The half-elves where *only* slightly taller than humans if memory serves me right.</I><BR/><BR/>Is it possible you saw the racial line-up on paizo.com for the Pathfinder product? It's on p. 11 of the Pathfinder RPG Alpha document (free download with registration).Caffeinatedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01313814514432590560noreply@blogger.com