Friday, June 26, 2009

Testing: DnD Compendium Tooltips

I'm trying some new functionality for the site. If it works properly, whenever your mouse hovers over a link to D&D compendium (like this one), you will see a box with the item, power, monster or whatever the link pointed to. It's not the most original of ideas (as some of you may suspect, I blatantly stole it from a popular site about another game), but I think it can be pretty useful.

Below, there are a bunch of compendium links to test the system with a variety of different items. Feel free to report any bugs or issues you find, and I'll try to find a solution within my (still limited) Javascript skills. If it works out well, and my blog doesn't implode or anything, you can expect a future post about how to replicate it on your site.

As a nice bonus, this will retroactively enhance compendium links in previous posts on this blog! So you can also browse the archive, and look for broken stuff (and I don't mean Twin Strike this time). Enjoy!


Some known issues:
- Yes, this sucks if you lack a DDI subscription. You'll see the login window over and over - I'd like to detect and hide this window, but I haven't found a solution yet.
- The tooltips are too large. This is because of the way the Compendium formats its stuff (and it seems I can't override it).

Some random powers:
Power 1
Power 2
Power 3
And a wandering monster: Monster 3
Power 1
Power 2
Power 3

A few races, which sadly are too large to fit.
Race 1
Race 2
Race 3

Did you know that the compendium now includes a rules glossary?
Glossary 1 Glossary 2 Glossary 3

Roll initiative, here are more monsters!
Monster 1
Monster 2
Monster 3

...and after killing them, you get some nice loot.
Item 1
Item 2 , Item 3


Read More......

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Reliably good

When you think of exciting, powerful Fighter mechanics, the reliable keyword is unlikely to jump to your mind. It's certainly solid, and it does its work, but its effect isn't what you would call flashy. To make things worse, it usually ends up in simple, mediocre powers like Brute Strike. While I don't doubt that this will eventually get solved, even if it means printing strictly superior stuff like Lasting Threat, I'd like reliable powers to be somewhat useful in the meantime. This is what I'll try to address today.

My approach is simple: take advantage of the fact that Reliable is a keyword, and design a few feats that reward you for using such powers. Hopefully, this will make Fighters feel a little less ashamed of using a non-stance daily.

Unerring Tactics
Heroic Tier
Prerequisite: Fighter
Benefit: Once per round, when you hit with a Fighter or Paragon Path daily power with the Reliable keyword, choose an Encounter power you know. That power gains the Reliable keyword until the end of the encounter.

Certain Recovery
Heroic Tier
Prerequisite: Fighter
Benefit: Once per round, when you hit with a Fighter or Paragon Path daily power with the Reliable keyword, you can spend a healing surge.

Infallible Shield
Heroic Tier
Prerequisite: Fighter
Benefit: Once per round, when you hit with a Fighter or Paragon Path daily power with the Reliable keyword, you gain a +1 bonus to AC until the end of the encounter.
Special: You must carry a shield to benefit from this feat.

Inescapable Assault
Epic Tier
Prerequisite: Fighter, 21st level.
Benefit: Once per round, when you hit with a Fighter or Paragon Path daily power with the Reliable keyword, you can reroll any number of dice in the damage roll. Until the end of the encounter, whenever you make a damage roll, you can reroll one die.
Read More......