Recent content by FitzTheRuke

In the very least they could give us a single page party action shot!

The old guy in Kingdom Come was Alex Ross's real-life father.

The giant whistled, a loud, high-pitched sound that reminded one of a strong wind, and another giant eagle, this one even more splendid than the previous one, soared down on great wings and landed nearby. The giant nodded to the group and mounted his eagle, patting her on her shoulder. She beat...

Hmmm... I tried 13th Age when it first launched an thought that it was on the right track in general, but not quite there - or not quite what I needed. I have respect for its designers and I'll take your advice and have a look! I've been working (slowly) on coming up with something that I would...

Oh yeah, don't get me wrong - if I had to chose one or the other, I'd go for simple monster over complex monster (most of the time). I suppose if D&D had a slightly more nuanced martial combat system built into its core, an Ogre would be more interesting. I wouldn't want THAT to be complex...

Great work, Dave! I don't know how much of a perfectionist you are, but if you don't mind some very brief (I haven't read every word in your document yet) editorial notes: You have minor typos in your conditions: Both Swallowed and Weakened say "Your are" when they mean to say "You are".

Evocative stuff that they can do. Take, for example the Ogre and then the Vampire. The Ogre is just a bag of HP that does damage, while the Vampire is a half page of Vampire stuff. The Ogre makes me bored by its simplicity; the Vampire makes me bored by its complexity. Now, I am not saying...

While I think that the 5e statblock is generally well designed, I wish that they didn't waste so much empty space.

It's just to long for me. I like Mercer's DMing, for the most part, and I enjoy the cartoon. The show is just too much content. That, and I prefer to spend that time playing myself over watching others do it. Yeah, I think I like bits and pieces of it, but the whole shebang is too much...

I don't see those two as different things. The story is simply the setting when it's breathing - coming to life - but I think I get your distinction.

Yes! Though my (personal) interest and tolerance for "thespianism" stops at "just under Critical Role" and doesn't extend even close to the "method actor" player-type. OTOH, invocations of colo(u)r (I like what you did there) are what I live for. Brief. Bold. Beautiful invocations of colour.

Well... I meant more "whatever is appropriate to the fiction" rather than the specific example. It can be any level of fluffiness that is appropriate to your own sensibilities, but I would personally prefer it to be a little more catered to the individual encounter, round, monster, and character...

I think you were doing fine. Don't be discouraged if people disagree with you, in particular when they misunderstand you. It happens. Forums are entertaining and have their uses, but it's not very easy to make yourself properly understood.

But to answer the OP: I almost always make my own monsters, and often on-the-fly. I do a LOT of research on the subject - but I just generally don't like a monster statblock. Any of them. They all seem to be either too much or too little, usually both.

Anecdote Warning: I once had an argument with a GM about climbing while holding a shield. Now, I'm not talking about rock climbing here, either - this guy claimed that it was next to impossible to climb a ladder with a shield on. So... (not in-game, mind, I don't argue with my GM during the...