730 reputation
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bio website dampes8n.com
location Columbia, MD
age 29
visits member for 11 months
seen yesterday
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I'm William Brall, a Sr. Web Developer at ZeniMax Online Studios working on the community site and patcher of Elder Scrolls Online.


May
6
comment How hard is it to stake a vampire?
You should accept the answer if it answers your question. Click the little check mark under the score on the answer.
Apr
16
comment How to handle wealthy player characters as a GM?
Bilbo/Frodo's Mythril armor was, as said in the book, worth greatly more than the entirety of the shire and surrounding countryside.
Feb
19
comment Making epic combat interesting and challenging but not complicated
I do these things: Cheat on recharge rolls, and just use those powers sparingly; Cheat on saves in the same way, often not expiring them at all; Generally not worry too damn much about it.
Feb
18
comment What is the significance of a Basic Attack vs. any other sort of attack?
It is also problematic that Essentials and earlier books and tools appear to be all part of the same game to outsiders/newbies. So it is not uncommon for a game to go on for a long time before anyone realizes they are mixing and matching. The confusion that then arises can tear games apart.
Jan
11
comment What's the difference between a roleplaying game and a board game?
@SteveCooper I've made no requirement. Those at the end are just common ways to spot RPGs. A most-common case guide. "A role playing game is a subset of all games that features the players taking on the roles (actions and/or affectations) of characters in an attempt to tell a shared story" Nothing about number of characters there.
Jan
10
comment What's the difference between a roleplaying game and a board game?
I consider Everyone is John to be an RPG. In fact, it is one of the best RPG's I've ever played. So much room for awesome creative role play.
Jan
10
comment What's the difference between a roleplaying game and a board game?
@SteveCooper A GM is really more of a referee than a player. I mean, they call the players players and not "character players". And there are RPGs with no GM. I also said that most players would be playing a single character, but sometimes it is more. The GM plays lots of characters, so that fits too.
Jan
10
comment Systems giving XP based on roleplay - How to avoid jealousy/party balance problem
@MrJinPengyou It is good to have a regular supply of new dead runners to pile up in an alleyway. Make good blankets for my orks.
Jan
10
comment How does the disease recovery mechanic work?
Twist it. Have a bad guy infect the party, perhaps via drinks, with the same plague, only a terrible variant. The players that caught it before, are immune to it! There, saved your hook. And fudge those DCs so they don't overcome the disease.
Jan
10
comment When GMing in a high-tech game world how do you handle potentially disruptive tech?
I have to say that Hotfix is not fun. It should be your last resort because it is and will feel like a Deus Ex Machina cop out. Generally it is best not to surprise your players with something like that. Give them a challenge to overcome, not a surprise that leaves them with no option other than to deal with the down-side. Give them every possible chance to figure out a way to avoid the issue. Caveat: if the hotfix happens during down time, it could be a good story hook. But if they prepare and are hit with it at the last second, they'll probably not stay in your game much longer.
Jan
10
comment What's the difference between a roleplaying game and a board game?
I think this is missing an important criteria. RPGs advance stories. There are games that feature role play but that don't advance a story. For example, there is a reverse version of the popular "Who am I" party game where players take on the role of someone else and others have to guess who they are.
Jan
10
revised What's the difference between a roleplaying game and a board game?
added 326 characters in body
Jan
10
revised What's the difference between a roleplaying game and a board game?
added 50 characters in body
Jan
10
revised What's the difference between a roleplaying game and a board game?
added 50 characters in body
Jan
10
answered What's the difference between a roleplaying game and a board game?
Jan
9
comment What are the most effective ways to protect a character against critical hits?
@corvec Jeor is on the right track. More is always better, though. Take a coin for instance, to judge if it is fair you can't simply flip it 4 times (2^2). A D20 should be rolled at least 400, better 4000 times.
Jan
9
comment What are the most effective ways to protect a character against critical hits?
@JonathanHobbs Statistically speaking, that's not enough rolls.
Jan
9
revised How do I encourage a GM to use the rules as written?
added 5 characters in body
Jan
7
comment Did piracy problems bring down White Wolf?
Piracy only rarely inhibits sales, and in a niche market like this probably doesn't effect them at all. Like with most media, most pirates would never have bought the books to begin with. It almost certainly translates into more sales. It certainly did in my own case. I downloaded the entire D&D 4E set of books as PDFs and since then have acquired about 25 books legitimately and subscribed to DDI. I wouldn't have taken the plunge otherwise. (also bought all of the dungeon tile sets and most of the map packs and several of the power card sets.)
Jan
7
answered How do I encourage a GM to use the rules as written?