I’ll admit that I’ve not run a Pathfinder game yet (I’ve been a player in our current Pathfinder game) but from reading the rules and using them as a player, I can totally see how they’ve streamlined tons of things and made the management easier.

I’ll agree with you that the production values of everything they make is top-notch and can’t be beat by anyone!

PS: Good luck with the Ennies!

It’s not that I hate Pathfinder, it’s just that I never really had too much fun with 3.x. It’s what was there at the time, and what people were playing, so I had to, but always with a bit of a bitter taste in my mouth.

DMing 3.x is a chore of epic proportions. I never cared for it when it was called D&D, can’t imagine I’d care for it under a new name. As a player, the lower levels of play were okay, but I got annoyed at higher levels. Character creation for me was always horrible, I just didn’t care for it either. Just the stupid skill ranks were enough to annoy me. I’m horribly ADD when it comes to rpg character making, and 3.x tried my patience, like Mutants and Masterminds does today.

Nothing personal against Pathfinder, the production values are extremely high, the people behind it are pros who understand their audience, and as a company they seem to be on the up and up… but in the end it’s the same game I never really cared for.

I’m not sure if D&D camp would have been better than normal camp when I was a kid — at least normal camp got me outside.

-Ben.

Think differently. Is the rusted door a challenge for the players to get through, or simply to show that the door is old and rusted?

What would have happened in my game: After traveling down a dark, damp corridor for what seems forever, you come across a closed, rusted door. It takes a few shoves and grunts, but the fighter will eventually jar it open.”

Now, I know that because Ad&D has an “Open Doors” stat, you could have done the following: After the fighter failed his roll, simply stat that the ranger then joins the fighter, and the door becomes opened.

You just have to figure out what the intention of the rusted door is. Is it there for flavor, or a challenge that the players have to get through?

If it’s a challenge, make sure that the players have the tools necessary to eventually open the door, should their “break down door” rolls fail.

If it’s not a challenge, why have a die roll in the first place? The fighter is surely strong, he should just be able to open it.

Thank you. This post reminded me of some of the little things that can make a big difference.

-Tourq