Idea: Nat 1s, don’t have to be a fail, (I mean they are, but lemme explain)

So like let’s say your rolling to intimidate, you roll a one, as a dm, you can say “well, they are so unintimidted in the slightest, that they let you pass” or “they’re so unintimidted, they don’t even wanna fight you”, just something to add some spice to your life

you roll a nat 1 on intimidate and the enemy goes 

‘‘oh, actually… are you alright? i don’t really want to hurt you, you… you need a lift home or something?‘‘

LMAO

There’s a concept in DMing called ‘failing up.’* In essence, its about making NAt 1s more than just about ‘well you failed’ in such a way as the momentum of the story stops dead. Let’s say a thief, with proficency and levels and lots of skills, fails to pick a lock - a nat 1. The lock cannot be picked, the door cannot be opened, the narrative and momentum stops dead as the aprty has to stand around and discuss what happens next. In failing up, however, the DM changes the parametres so that a nat 1 becomes less about failure and more ‘success with consequences’ (similar to what Monster Of The Week has as a built-in mechanic’). The thief rolls a nat 1 - he picks the lock, but the lock breaks loudly enough to alert the guards, and sudden this stealth mission is turning pear-shaped. The fighter rolls a nat 1: he moves the heavy boulder, but he throws his back out, and the party has no time to stop and rest - for the next while he’s going to be disadvantaged on a lot of checks. The wizard rolls a nat 1 on their arcana - they know enough to read the spell, but not enough to pick-up the curse built into the text, and so on. Failure should not be dead-end, narratively. *Okay, the exact name escapes me for the moment and I’m having a damned hard time figuring out if my source was Matt Coville or The Angry GM or someone else, but failing up works just as well.

Oh jeez, 1000 notes!!! Thanks folks!

not to sound sappy, but i personally think that a happy ending that the characters bled, suffered and fought for is a thousand times more interesting than a bland tragic ending that the author clearly thought would be “subversive”

The myth that panic, looting, and antisocial behavior increases during the apocalypse (or apocalyptic-like scenarios) is in fact a myth—and has been solidly disproved by multiple scientific studies. The National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program, a research group within the United States Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA), has produced research that shows over and over again that “disaster victims are assisted first by others in the immediate vicinity and surrounding area and only later by official public safety personnel […] The spontaneous provision of assistance is facilitated by the fact that when crises occur, they take place in the context of ongoing community life and daily routines—that is, they affect not isolated individuals but rather people who are embedded in networks of social relationships.” (Facing Hazards and Disasters: Understanding Human Dimensions, National Academy of Sciences, 2006). Humans do not, under the pressure of an emergency, socially collapse. Rather, they seem to display higher levels of social cohesion, despite what media or government agents might expect…or portray on TV. Humans, after the apocalypse, band together in collectives to help one another—and they do this spontaneously. Disaster response workers call it ‘spontaneous prosocial helping behavior’, and it saves lives.

I’ve been sharing this article a lot recently! I think it’s important

#stop believing capitalism’s myths about human nature#and start remembering that we are the descendants of the first animals to bury their dead with flowers#we are all alive because of kindness. because of cooperation. because of companionship. because of mutual aid.#we did not become the dominant species based on rugged individualism: we survived together. and that’s the only way forward. (via @robotmango)

@staff

You know for all this bullshit that you’re doing to clean up your website, you’re still shockingly slow about cleaning up queerphobia, racism, and eugenics.

You have the best intentions but the worst methods, and this is only going to end up shooting you in the foot. I’m out.

Happy Hanukkah to my Jewish followers. May the next several days bring you light and blessings.

if you reblog the todd howard version of this, idk youre not smart

Care to explain who this guy is then? I’m sure he’s Howard’s boss or something and actually more culpable but without context he just looks like some white guy I’d run into at Autozone

It’s Pete Hines, who is in every Bethesda presentation so it’s hard to believe you don’t know him. He’s the vice president of Bethesda, and head of PR relations and marketing. So he deals with every business oriented thing, while Todd is an executive game director and producer, who doesn’t involve himself much in the corporate side I’m sure.

I would say Pete Hines is more culpable and at fault for the mess regarding refunds of 76, the nylon bag issue of the power armor edition. And So On.

If you want to continue to rag on Todd, at least realize who’s more in charge because it isn’t him. It’s Pete.

There go the leftist hoardes begging for the destruction of the West so they can worship at the feet of satan incarnate

Reblog if you’re a denizen of the leftist hoard begging for the destruction of the West so you can worship at the feet of Satan incarnate.

Just wanted to throw this up here again– and may reblog this once a week or so, just to keep from spamming you all! I still have these available for $15 a piece, plus $3.50 shipping! Please let me know in a message if you’re interested in picking one up! And yes, I will do international shipping!

*accordion noises*