Preparing some writing....
ObsidianShade
Member Posts: 69
I've got some work underway, but is still in first draft stage, (chapter I and part of II are already done) though I hope to have to something ready to post by the end of the week, presuming the editing stage doesn't end up being too extensive.
What I've found myself doing however, is pretty much ditching most of the mechanical aspects of the game, particularly in areas I don't feel ever made much sense outside of game balance. I'm more or less ditching class in favor of profession to hopefully create more organic characters, which might well mean that they don't resemble their D&D counterparts as much. I'll probably in that respect be going a bit beyond what most D&D writers, like even Salavatore in his novels
Stats aren't going to mean as much, though I might use them as a rough guideline, but I'm going to alter what some of them mean, for example characters with high dexterity are more likely to hit more often with *all* weapons, while strength factors more into damage. Hit Points are another thing I'm more or less tossing out the window, though characters will be able to still withstand a bit of damage, however the biggest factor in that is going to be armor or its equivalent. Even a very tough unarmored character is going to be very quickly killed or incapacitated after taking a few wounds, due to trauma and blood loss, if nothing else.
I'm also planning on trying to depict how weapons actually work against armor in a more realistic fashion, namely that things like swords, work poorly against even medium armor, and are all but useless against heavy armor, unless a gap can be found, so blunt, impact type weapons will gradually come into more use by the characters when dealing with it. As I posted somewhere else in the forums, a character's main defense in combat is always going to be their weapon, followed by their shield, then footwork, and finally, as a last resort, armor. Dual wielding will also be depicted much closer to how it works in reality vs how it works in the game.
The magic system is something I'm also going to handle in passing, not being hung up on such things spells per day, levels, or memorization, the latter I'm ditching entirely. While spellcasters have a limit of how much arcane or divine energy they channel though their bodies per day, wizards don't "forget" their spells any more than a fighter forgets his katas, while clerics and priests (yes, the are separate things) aren't casting spells, so much as uttering prayers, and it's the deity who grants them, via energy channeled through their servant.
The hope is that these changes will offer a more realistic feel to the writing. I'm very rusty, this being the first thing I've posted anywhere in years, but I'm interested in hearing your opinions on the changes I've described above, so comments and suggestions are always welcome. I especially want to hear about how other posters balance game mechanics vs depictions in their own writing.
What I've found myself doing however, is pretty much ditching most of the mechanical aspects of the game, particularly in areas I don't feel ever made much sense outside of game balance. I'm more or less ditching class in favor of profession to hopefully create more organic characters, which might well mean that they don't resemble their D&D counterparts as much. I'll probably in that respect be going a bit beyond what most D&D writers, like even Salavatore in his novels
Stats aren't going to mean as much, though I might use them as a rough guideline, but I'm going to alter what some of them mean, for example characters with high dexterity are more likely to hit more often with *all* weapons, while strength factors more into damage. Hit Points are another thing I'm more or less tossing out the window, though characters will be able to still withstand a bit of damage, however the biggest factor in that is going to be armor or its equivalent. Even a very tough unarmored character is going to be very quickly killed or incapacitated after taking a few wounds, due to trauma and blood loss, if nothing else.
I'm also planning on trying to depict how weapons actually work against armor in a more realistic fashion, namely that things like swords, work poorly against even medium armor, and are all but useless against heavy armor, unless a gap can be found, so blunt, impact type weapons will gradually come into more use by the characters when dealing with it. As I posted somewhere else in the forums, a character's main defense in combat is always going to be their weapon, followed by their shield, then footwork, and finally, as a last resort, armor. Dual wielding will also be depicted much closer to how it works in reality vs how it works in the game.
The magic system is something I'm also going to handle in passing, not being hung up on such things spells per day, levels, or memorization, the latter I'm ditching entirely. While spellcasters have a limit of how much arcane or divine energy they channel though their bodies per day, wizards don't "forget" their spells any more than a fighter forgets his katas, while clerics and priests (yes, the are separate things) aren't casting spells, so much as uttering prayers, and it's the deity who grants them, via energy channeled through their servant.
The hope is that these changes will offer a more realistic feel to the writing. I'm very rusty, this being the first thing I've posted anywhere in years, but I'm interested in hearing your opinions on the changes I've described above, so comments and suggestions are always welcome. I especially want to hear about how other posters balance game mechanics vs depictions in their own writing.
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