Tabletop Asks: I Ask Myself
Since I didn’t get any Tabletop Asks and I promised I’d reply by tonight, I decided to answer a few I liked.
Athletics -- Group together all of your monsters. When I was first starting out I ran a combat where I rolled the initiative for EACH INDIVIDUAL of 22 monstrous scorpions. Spoiler alert--the combat dragged on and on... Put them all at the same initiative if you’re throwing “clones”. Also, limit the amount of “clones”. Fighting 22 scorpions is fun in theory, but my group lost interest quickly.
Intimidate -- It’s gotten close. A few times in the past I had a PPP who never stopped complaining. They would stop the game to complain and pretty much yell at me and/or the “offending player”. That’s always been the worst for me; having an experienced player who should know better cause a scene that makes my less-experienced players and long-time friends uncomfortable. Thankfully they respected my ultimate ultimatum and now are enjoying the game with everyone.
Streetwise -- I find that you need at least 4 regular players in a session to continue a storyline, as well as just gaming in general. At least in 3.5, Challenge Ratings for monsters are based on parties of 4. But if you use this D20SRD Encounter Calculator you can make adjustments on the fly if you have an extra or one missing during a session.
My group currently has “six” players in it. It’s very story driven, so with our numbers we average at least 4 per session. This allows people who have sudden work/family stuff pop up come in and out, but also it keeps the more regular players in the story every week.
