Rug wrote: ↑Thu, 14. Mar 19, 10:19
I like pretty much everything about the RPG genre at an intellectual level. A game with a good story that is slowly revealed through the playing, the new world to explore, the people to meet along the way ... But I always struggle to play them "properly", and I need to get help.
I can read a million posts talking about Tanks, Squishies, Crowd Control, Healers, and Damage Dealers, along with discussions of the merits of all the various Classes and Builds, and I sort of understand it. But when faced with the choices at each leveling up I have no guiding principles - I basically just guess and plonk the points anywhere with no cohesive plan. I'm just guessing.
So can anyone point me at a good resource that will tell me what (for example) a Tank needs, and indeed how best to use him/her in combat ? A good generic guide would (I hope) really help... I never played the tabletop variety, so I missed out on the opportunity to be mentored by more experienced players....
The only rule is to "Have Fun." Every single rule in a Pen&Paper RPG revolves around that.
Want to be a Halfling Warrior? Go for it. An Orc mage? Do it! A Dwarf Crossdressing Priestess Who Think's He's Irresistible? That would be awesome! Do you see what I'm getting at? All of this is geared towards providing elements for the players to use to have fun with.
"What would happen if...."
^--- That is the premise of any tabletop RPG session, no matter the rules system.
To discuss specifics wouldn't really be warrranted unless one is intimately familiar with the rules system in question, but that's all unnecessary. The only thing that is necessary is that you understand you're expected to play "a character" and your vision of that character and how you portray it is all that matters. Well, you do have to learn how to play with your fellow players so that they enjoy your company and all, but any roleplayer will appreciate a well roleplayed character, even if they invent ways to kill off your current character because they're annoyed by it. You'll just be rolling up a new one right there on the spot.
Here's how you play a "Tank" sort of character. Ready? OK, here it goes...
"How do you think a Tank character should be played?"
There, that's it.
Sure, a big beefy tanky sorta character might need to be big, beefy, and tanky in order to be effective. But, that's not always "fun." So, I'll choose a Gnome Fighter, instead. They didn't have a breastplate in my size, since I'm a female gnome with size 86 DDD breasticulars, so things kind of drag on the ground a bit and the chainmail hauberk underneath gets caught in my feet. You'll have to carry me if we have to run, by the way. But, I'm STRONK! I've got a fifty-eleven Strength because everyone knows Charisma is a dump stat... I'm also barely more intelligent than a bag of bread, since I wanted to be STRONK! That means you might have to convince me pointing my halberd (Yes, a properly fashionable gnome female fighter prefers to use a halberd in combat) towards the enemy is A Good Idea ™. I'm not really nimble (*See "STRONK!") but I'm decent enough at what I do, which is absorb and deal damage, to be highly valued amongst my peers. The ones that aren't dead. I mean, the one's that I successfully kept alive through our adventures together. Uh... That one guy, that one time, that lived.
While not everyone enjoys a twisted sense of humor in their tabletop RPG experience, the above is just an acceptable example of what the whole thing is about - It's about playing a game of "What would happen if..." and then filling in the blanks. Rules don't matter. Gear doesn't matter. What matters is having fun with your friends and creating a shared experience.
Practical Matters: There aren't "Tanks" necessarily in P&P RPGs. Some might allow for that, though. But, that's more a convention of MMORPG mechanics and making a PC game "work" for that kind of experience. These days, with better AI, better engines, etc, MMOs can deviate from the "Classic Three" formula of Tank, DPS, Healer. P&P RPG never really used that kind of a formula, even though it was certainly the first go-to response when players built/build a party.
Damage mitigation is key for a "Tank." Since Evasion Tanks aren't easily possible, you'll need good armor, excellent to outstaning and remarkable hit-points and very good mitigation and resistances to common "direct damage" causing ailments and the like. Poison, fire, cold, eletricity resistances, etc.. Whatever the system provides for. In a P&P RPG, everyone is expected to pull their weight. "Taking Damage" is not, necessarily, a role that is expected of players. "Dishing out damage or supporting those who do" IS. Without doing damage yourself, if you have stacked up everything in favor of being a "Tank" then you'll need ways to "Taunt" the enemy, maybe debuffs like hamstringing them, bashing, pushing them around, etc... But, to be honest, that's pretty darn boring - It feels good to forcefully touch a goblin's face with a halberd.
All you have to do is have fun. That's all the tools are there to provide for you. The DM/GM is just there to help interpret the rules and to provide you with an additional set of "What would happen if..." starting conditions and to help develop the game as it goes along. Sure, there's a story, but the story is always, ever, told by the Players. Yes, a DM/GM has a story in mind, usually. But, a good one knows that the best storywriters are the Players, themselves, and will gladly toss away mounds of predrawn dungeons and mountains of paperwork and scribbles just because the players have discovered something to do that is more funnerer for everyone involved.
Gnome. Fighter. Female. Big Breasticulars. Oversized breastplate she can't wear very well. Can't run very well, due to her feet getting tangled up all the time in it. But, she's STRONK and effective at what she does. Armed with giant-big-hugenormous halberd once used by a giant... No, she does not have "Vertically Challenged" issues. HOW DARE YOU ASK!
/rollforinitiative