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Oct 8, 2024 3:43 pm
Okay, what does that mean?
Oct 8, 2024 3:57 pm
It means that you and Vasco have just become Zach's tutors in Mithric, since Jacky cannot do it any longer. So when we come across Mithric writings, Zach will ask you what they mean and will start trying to figure them out for himself. Being that Zach has INT 8, he's a bit slower than average, and that manifests most often with his mispronouncing or misusing names :)
Oct 8, 2024 4:53 pm
Sure, no problem!
Oct 8, 2024 5:27 pm
Ha, very good! Grim will be surly about it, but only in a fun dwarven sort of way.
Oct 8, 2024 7:01 pm
Stalker05 says:
Sure, no problem!
👍
WhiteDwarf says:
Ha, very good! Grim will be surly about it, but only in a fun dwarven sort of way.
Im sure Gumball will be a fantastic teacher, right Gasgrill? 😝
Oct 14, 2024 4:53 am
Hello. I will be out for a couple more sets of 2.5 days and then I should be good for a while. I will be offline from the afternoon of Wednesday October 16 to Saturday night October 19 and once again a week later from Wednesday afternoon October 23 until Saturday night October 26. If necessary, during that time, I trust @Burbage to run Zacharias as an NPC to keep the story going. Thank you.
Oct 14, 2024 4:52 pm
I will also have spotty availability Thursday 10/17 through Monday 10/21. I'll probably have opportunity to hop on a couple times but don't want to count on it. @Burbage feel free to autopilot Thrudmarr during that period. When in doubt, hit with axe.
Oct 14, 2024 5:07 pm
Thanks both for the heads up. Given Thrud's current predicament, I won't make any major decisions on his behalf until you are back.
Oct 14, 2024 5:08 pm
matmaisan says:
OOC:
Not sure if it's the case in OSRIC, but in ADnD 1ed, your "to hit" bonuses couldn't make a natural roll of 19 or less go above 20. Only with a natural twenty and a bonus could a character reach a to hit roll above 20. That is the reason for the 20s repeated six times on the combat matrices.

So if your burly lvl 1 fighter warrior with a total of +4 due to high strength and specialization rolls an 18, his adjusted roll is capped at 20, and he can hit any target with AC -5 or worse. A peasant (0 HD) that is charging with a spear (+2 to hit) and rolls a nat 20, gets a 22 as a result, and could hit up to AC-6.

The whole point of this rule — which I suppose harkens to the game's wargaming past — was to say that extremely powerful creatures (as expressed in an unearthly AC) couldn't be hit by ordinary folk at all : a demon lord with -8 AC wouldn't be hit even if 300 archers shot at it, even if statistically, there'd be 15 natural 20s in the mix... and that's without considering immunity to non-magical weapons and such, which also made some relatively mid-level monsters impervious to mundane attacks, regardless of the rolls...
Thanks for the insight. That’s interesting, I wasn’t aware. I went back to the DMG to check (page 82). If I parse the Gygaxian text correctly, it seems that what you describe is an optional rule for those whose "sensibilities are offended" by the to-hit table. I haven’t been able to find an equivalent explanation in OSRIC, so I’m tempted to interpret the OSRIC tables at face value unless anyone objects. It doesn’t make any difference in Thrud’s case … he’s got more pressing matters to worry about.

As a related aside, I’ve been down something of an Anthony Huso AD&D 1E rules-as-written rabbit hole recently. I have to admit the idea of running such a game is strangely appealing. Hopefully I’ll get over it.
Oct 14, 2024 6:11 pm
I misremembered the rule: indeed only the first of six 20s could be hit by a modified roll, whereas hitting the second 20 or any number above 20 involved rolling a natural 20… so even more restrictive than I remembered. In any case I recall playing with a thacO value and purely linear attack progression back in the day.

If there is interest in playing an ADnD as written, I’m game. I could even run it, if no one else wants to DM… it’s a version of the game Guyaux certainly did not play in his own home game, but it could be a really interesting experiment.
Oct 14, 2024 11:02 pm
@Burbage, just to make sure I understood: Are you saying since this rule is described as optional in 1e and doesn't appear in OSRIC, that we should treat the roll of a modified 20+ as it would appear on the chart? Meaning for Thurdmarr, a modified 21 would hit AC -6? Or would he need a natural 20 since it's beyond the first 20 on the chart?

Relevant section from 1e DM guide:

PROGRESSION ON THE COMBAT TABLES
A quick glance at the progression of numbers on the COMBAT TABLES will
reveal that 20 is repeated. This reflects the fact that a 20 indicates a
"perfect" hit. It also incidentally helps to assure that opponents with high
armor class value are not "hit proof" in most cases. Should any DM find
that this system offends his or her sensibilities, the following modification
is suggested: Consider the repeated 20 as a perfectly-aimed attack which
does not gain any benefit from strength or magical properties of any sort
- spell, missile, or weapon. That is, the 20 must be attained by a roll of
natural 20. All bonuses accrue only up to and including a total of 20, so
that even if a character attacked with a bonus for strength of +3 and a +3
magic sword he or she would have to roll a natural 20 in order to score a
hit on any creature normally hit by the second or successive repetitions of
20, i.e. the bonus (+3 in the example) could not exceed a total score of 20
unless an actual 20 is rolled. Thus, the COMBAT TABLES could be amended
to read like this:

21 (natural 20 plus at least + 1 bonus)
20 (natural)
20 (natural)
20 (natural)
20 (natural)
20 (natural)
20 (die result + bonuses to total)
19 (die result + bonuses to total)

This then gives the advantage of allowing creatures to hit and be hit, yet it
denies any undue advantages, as the second and all successive 20s, as
well as all "to hit" scores above 20 require a natural die roll of 20.
Oct 15, 2024 3:37 pm
dracul104 says:
@Burbage, just to make sure I understood: Are you saying since this rule is described as optional in 1e and doesn't appear in OSRIC, that we should treat the roll of a modified 20+ as it would appear on the chart? Meaning for Thurdmarr, a modified 21 would hit AC -6?
Correct.
Oct 22, 2024 12:26 pm
I'm back ya'll! Was way too busy to have time to post. Gotta catch back up on what all happened and Thrudmarr will jump back in.
Oct 22, 2024 1:01 pm
Welcome back! :)
Oct 29, 2024 4:41 pm
Hello everyone! I am having some time constraints due to IRL issues. The learning curve of OSRIC and my inexperience with it, is making it a bit difficult for me to continue Arden Vul. You all enjoy this fascinating mega dungeon! Hopefully, I will be able to experience it sometime later.
Oct 29, 2024 7:21 pm
Pity you’re leaving: Vasco was a fine companion! All the best in you RL endeavours!
Last edited October 30, 2024 5:32 am
Oct 29, 2024 10:02 pm
Sad to see Vasco go, hope you get things worked out.
Oct 30, 2024 1:05 pm
Farewell Vasco and Stalker! Good luck in your future adventures!
Nov 1, 2024 1:57 pm
New player incoming ... welcome Frandal!
Nov 1, 2024 2:06 pm
Welcome!
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