Thoughts on 4.0 now that the fervor has died down a bit

[Cadaver]

My issue with self-calculating sheets is economics...It's cheaper to print the sheet on good cardstock once and re-write everythign each level or two (good carstock ensures survival after multiple erasures) than to print a new copy at every even level.

Well, the few pennies I spend on redoing new sheets really doesn't compare to the other money and time I spend.

For example:

 

 

I AutoCAD and Print out every magic item my group finds and print them out on card stock.

[Mengu]

I AutoCAD and Print out every magic item my group finds and print them out on card stock.

 

And here I thought I might be going overboard by keeping an excel sheet, and printing all item stat blocks on card stock for my players whenever they find an item. Thanks for making me feel better about the time I spend on prep work.

[kristof65]

My issue with self-calculating sheets is economics...It's cheaper to print the sheet on good cardstock once and re-write everythign each level or two (good carstock ensures survival after multiple erasures) than to print a new copy at every even level.

Heh heh...Cheapeskate! Even when I do my character sheets by hand, I start a new sheet every level. So, yes, my 15th level Gnome Beguiler has 14 previous character sheets stashed at the back of his notebook.

 

That's all personal preference anyway.

 

 

EDIT: I do want to be perfectly clear that I'm not condemning Bryan for his preference. In my game groups, we're split just about 50/50 between those who update one sheet, and those who do a new one every level. While I can go back and tell exactly what I've changed with each level, half the people in my group can say they've never accidently played a session with the wrong character sheet. As a GM, I don't care which method players prefer, however, I do like to make copies of their character sheets at every level (actually, these days, with my new multi-function, I scan them to PDF).

[Lars Porsenna]

I'm like kristof65 in that I do a new character sheet every level. Paper is relatively cheap (I have reams and reams of it at home), and I use the cheaper photocopier paper rather than the more heavy and higher quality paper. This also saves the convenience of having to erase thigns, and it keeps an electronic copy available for storage, archiving, and updating...

 

Damon.

[Reaperbryan]

It's not the paper... it;s the ink cartridges! With 4 games I participate in, that gets pricey fast.

[Gimp]

I update both my computer records, and my paper sheet. If the paper gets lost, damaged, or illegible, I print a new sheet. If enough new stuff gets added that I want a better reference of new skills and gear, I print a new sheet.

[Akela]

For what it's worth/additional info: Our group has been participating in the beta testing of the WotC character creator software and it does a fantastic job of keeping track of things and the cards.

 

The beta does the first 3 levels: http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/i...haracterbuilder

[kristof65]

It's not the paper... it;s the ink cartridges! With 4 games I participate in, that gets pricey fast.

You need a laser printer. And a company to subcontract to that requires you print far more for them than then you ever would on your own.

 

Part of my contract with my client has them paying for all my office supplies. Since I'm often printing 100-300 pages a week on their behalf, printing my own stuff out doesn't even show up as a blip on my expense reports.

 

Yes, it's a sweet deal. Even so, all my color stuff is on my ink jet printer, at my expense. I use ProFantasy's Campaign Cartographer, and I print a lot of maps and the like. I just rack it up as a cost of enjoying my hobby. In the end, it's still cheaper than golf, skiing or season tickets to the Broncos.

[Cadaver]

I use ProFantasy's Campaign Cartographer, and I print a lot of maps and the like. I just rack it up as a cost of enjoying my hobby. In the end, it's still cheaper than golf, skiing or season tickets to the Broncos.

I have a copy of CC, it is not very user friendly, and since I already have taught myself AutoCAD...

What's really amusing is I autoCAD at work all the time and since I've never been "trained" on it, the engineer types who are trained on it are amazed at some of the things I use it for, simply because they've been trained in what it is used for. I don't have those preconceived notions trained into me.

[joshuaslater]

After all this time I still haven't read my bootlegged copies of 4e!! I'm with Bryan in that Savage Worlds is my favorite system. It's completely stolen my heart and I can't bring myself to bother with D&D anymore. The place we gather to play has two games going, one on Thursday night, and one on Sundays. I'm only in on Sundays, but two of our players are in both, and interestingly, Savage Worlds has taken over both groups. With the disparate personalities of both crews, something must have struck a chord. It's tough to go back to Hasbro after Pinnacle gets a hold on you.

 

I've been roleplaying off and on since the eighties, and played all the old faves. AD&D, Call of Cthulhu, Star Frontiers, Gangbusters, Tunnels & Trolls, Traveller, Gamma World, and more I'm forgetting.

 

I am happy that the D&D game is being produced, no matter what version it is, if just to give people an RPG when they could just be playing some soulless computer game. Fourth edition has also produced more Savages for me to game with, so it's win/win all 'round.

 

I had gotten burned out and dissatisfied with 3 and 3.5, so much so that even the changes to this new version people raved about left me wanting something more. When I describe a Savage Worlds character, they are so much more than a collection of feats, skills, and powers. I feel like I have more substance for roleplaying with the feel of tabletop gaming in the combats.

 

As an avid player of tabletop games like Chronopia, Warzone, Spinespur, etc., it's changed my whole outlook on gaming. 'Feels like I have the best of both worlds, and a system that you can run any genre with. That's a lot of bang for your buck. I know the d20 system has been worked for other genres, but the level based stuff still seems to go the way of D&D, and doesn't seem worth it to me in both time and money. I like having it all, as rare as that happens.

[axegrrl]

Having played 4E for a bit, we dropped out of a campaign. It was sooo shallow. All the character classes ended up feeling pretty much the same at the table. Each combat round, you looked at your list of powers, tapped one, it maybe did damage, then the next person tapped one of their powers, and it similarly did damage...often in the same general way: not realistically, but like a super-power. And then the monsters with a single hit point were incapacitating party members...yech.

 

If you like some of the powers/options in 4E, but find it feels more like Supers and Dragons or Dungeon Heroes, check out Monte Cook's Books of Experimental Might. I suspect the 4E crew borrowed a fair bit from Monte's ideas. The BOXM rachets up the power level of the original character classes to be more on a par with classes from later books. Also nice is getting a feat every level. This enables some of those cool character concepts that you just couldn't do with the base 3.5 system 'cause you'd never be able to get the feats to make it work before epic levels. Fighters get more oomph from feats when they're taken as fighter bonus feats, and they have fighting styles, too. Playing a fighter is fun again.

[joshuaslater]

axegrrl you've given us options. I think enough gaming material came out with the OGL for 3 and 3.5 that gamers will have enough to occupy them for the rest of their lives, if they so choose.

 

It still boils down to fun. Or at least it's supposed to.

[haldir]

It still boils down to fun. Or at least it's supposed to.

 

& this I think is what it's all about, no matter what system or edition you play.

 

RM

[cerebro1974]

We started to print out and update the sheet for level advancement NORMALLY, however, my kids have gotten quite advanced in thier computer skills, and print thiers out and laminate them, to keep them in better shape. The pros are they have a ton of fun "Customizing" thier characters, the cons, they each have several and they rotate them a lot, so there isn't much level advancement. I never mind though, because we all have fn and enjoy playing, no matter how many times they tackle the caves of chaos!!!!

[joshuaslater]

Glad to see young'uns playing. I will say that D&D opened my eyes to lots of reading, and vocabulary. Fun using your brain. Bonus, huh?