If you fancy forking out for a big ol' book, Ultimate Toolbox is the ticket.

Quote from: rezinzar;341301If you fancy forking out for a big ol' book, Ultimate Toolbox is the ticket.

Ultimate Toolbox is pretty damned tasty.

There's also still copies of the original Toolbox to be found (a fair bit cheaper), and it's still a great book.

I'm going to have to check out ultimate toolbox one of these days. The original is really excellent, and one of the D20 books I got the most use out of, and the new one is supposed to be much larger.

RPGPundit

Quote from: RPGPundit;341503I'm going to have to check out ultimate toolbox one of these days. The original is really excellent, and one of the D20 books I got the most use out of, and the new one is supposed to be much larger.

RPGPundit

400 pages vs 192 pages, and it's not system-specific (not that much of Toolbox couldn't be adapted, of course).

Pretty fantastic stuff.

Quote from: kythri;341580400 pages vs 192 pages, and it's not system-specific (not that much of Toolbox couldn't be adapted, of course).

Pretty fantastic stuff.

I'll probably never even use it in any of my games and I'm seconding the recommendation.  It covers so much it's hilarious.  There's a table for fucking weeds.

(has a perverse love of having and reading random roll charts while avoiding their use)

Is there a pipe table?

RPGPundit

I highly discourage going with any real life experiences you may have with wildlife unless perhaps you are an active hunter.  Coming across bears, coyotes, cougars, deer, elk and moose are not uncommon in areas where the population of said species is enough to hunt them.  So I'd say a chance of one in six or ten would be a good number.  Also keep in mind, your random encounter table doesn't necessarily mean the PC's will have a battle encounter, just an encounter.  So the bear may take one look at the PC's and walk away if not provoked.

Quote from: Cranewings;341196I don't really like random encounter tables to include CRs, unless the GM (me) has designated CRs for areas on the map (which I haven't) and players have chosen to go to an area because they think they can handle it (haven't). I prefer a more honest spread on the sheet...

Well, it is a pretty wide variance from 5. I think the CR is mainly For Your (the DM's) Information, so you can know how badly you are going the thrash the PCs on average.

Quote from: Caesar Slaad;342726Well, it is a pretty wide variance from 5. I think the CR is mainly For Your (the DM's) Information, so you can know how badly you are going the thrash the PCs on average.

Do you have any opinion on how you communicate CR to players, particularly when they don't know how strong a monster or villain is, or you made it up yourself?

Imagine "Ninja Ninja" as an NPC, and Afro as the PC.

http://video.yahoo.com/watch/233326/1829553

Quote from: Cranewings;342736Do you have any opinion on how you communicate CR to players, particularly when they don't know how strong a monster or villain is, or you made it up yourself?

I'm not fond of the notion of communicating game terms to the players where it doesn't play a role in resolving the mechanics. CR is strictly a behind-the-screen thing AFAIAC.

If you mean more generally, "how would you communicate the level of dangers the PCs are in"... I'd roll a few times on the table and distribute the results as rumors and news. "Normally, the blasted plains are pretty safe, but last winter, the northern caravan were ravaged by an ice wyrm", etc.

Quote from: Caesar Slaad;342768I'm not fond of the notion of communicating game terms to the players where it doesn't play a role in resolving the mechanics. CR is strictly a behind-the-screen thing AFAIAC.

If you mean more generally, "how would you communicate the level of dangers the PCs are in"... I'd roll a few times on the table and distribute the results as rumors and news. "Normally, the blasted plains are pretty safe, but last winter, the northern caravan were ravaged by an ice wyrm", etc.

I like to think that fighters are pretty good judges of the skill of the people they are coming up against. You can look at the way a person or animal moves, its quickness, and confidence, and judge in a general way how hard it will be to prevail against it.

I think it is dishonest to let a PC get into a fight with a guy and let them start trading blows, only informing the PC how much danger he is in by the fact that the person they are fighting has the ability to deal or take too much damage. The ability to size up an opponent is a big part of being good and having wisdom.

Usually, I'll tell players things like, "the rogue looks savy but he's not a match for you" if he is a level or two lower. If he is the same, "he seems like a dangerous equal." If he is higher level, "his presence conveys confidence from having lived through more than you've seen. You don't think you can take him."

If the villain can bluff well, I might let them make Sense Motive rolls or they will think he is a lower level.