Alien Familiar RPG Podcast

By Clayton RayLeisure Hobbies

Alien Familiar RPG Podcast episodes

September 16, 2018Episode 52: The Final Battle
https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/alienfamiliar.files.wordpress.com/2018/09/afp-episode-52-the-final-battle.mp3
Download the episode here
Hosts: Clayton, Hayley, Lanina, and KD
In this episode we talk about how to have boss fights
My emailed advice to Lanina on running a boss fight in 3.5 D&D
Designing the Boss
Here’s what I’ve found works best for creating melee final boss monsters in D&D
Hit Points –
This is the best place to start when designing D&D final bosses. You want the boss to be tough enough that if it goes last in initiative, it isn’t going to be dead before it gets to act. Look at how much damage each character can do in one round of combat. Assume the fighter, monk, bard, and druid (and druid’s companions) all hit and deal their max damage. Assume the wizard casts their most damaging spell and rolls maximum damage. If the Bard has Haste, assume everyone will get an extra attack. Add all that damage together and that is the minimum number of hit points your monster should have. Then, take the average level of the party and multiply it by 12. Use whichever number is higher.
To Hit
Since this is primarily going to be a melee baddie, you want her to be able to reliably hit the PC with the best defenses. Take the highest AC of the PCs and subtract 5. This gives you a target number for your To-Hit bonus. The reason why you want your baddie to hit reliably because she will get fewer attacks each round that the PCs. This assumes that the PCs are fighting no one other than the demon. It gets trickier if there are multiple enemies that the PCs are fighting, because the more enemies that you have to keep track of, the more likely you will forget to use some cool attack or ability.
Damage
The amount of damage that your baddie should be doing in a melee attack should max out at the monster’s to-hit. Since you know what weapons the baddie is using, look at the damage die of the weapon with the best damage. A spear does d8 damage. Take To Hit -8, and that is its melee damage bonus
Number of Attacks and attack bonus per attack
You want your baddie to have more attacks in a round than any of your PCs. This probably means looking at how many attacks the monk has, then adding 1. Does the demon have a bite attack, wing buffet, tail attack, or some other appendage that it can use to attack?
Since your baddie is wielding multiple weapons (carried weapons or other forms of attack), each weapon gets an attack at the full To Hit. If you have any attacks left, then give an extra attack at To Hit -5 until you have cycled through the each weapon. If you still have any attacks left, calculate at To Hit -10.
Armor Class
AC should be something that your melee PCs can reliably hit. Take the to-hit of the weakest melee PC and add 13 to it.
Saves
Demons don’t have a favored saving throw. Pick one to be at To Hit -2, and the others at -3.
Skills
If the baddie needs to make a skill check for something it would logically be able to do, use To Hit
Special powers and attacks
If your baddie has any special qualities added to its attacks, you should drop the damage of that attack. For instance, if the baddie has poisoned weapons, a stun attack, or a fiery aura that damages those next to her.
Spells and spell-like abilities. Stick to things that buff the demon or that are area of effect against the PCs.
Do not give the demon healing powers…unless the PCs have a way to nullify them.
Make the baddie big so that it has reach and can melee attack from further away
Final touches for the stats
Demons have a whole set of innate resistances, vulnerabilities, and abilities that can be found on page 40 of the Monster Manual
Lead up to the final fight
D&D assumes 4 encounters in a day in which they must expend resources. Let them fight the demon as encounter #3, that way they should still have resources, but not their best ones.
Know how the PCs are going to learn about any weaknesses or tricks as to how the fight must be won. Have a backup plan of how you are going to convey this information.
Notes on Running the Final Fight
If they manage to kill the baddie in one round due to critical hits, good for them.
If you come to realize that my advice on how to build the baddie was grossly wrong and it is going to wipe out the party, give it fewer attacks per round and/or reduce the damage that it deals
Spread the love, and by love, I mean pain. Do not use all of her attacks against one PC, unless that is the only PC within range. Spread them out, but if one PC has to take more attacks than the others, then it should be the fighter.
Keep Moving. Have the baddie move every round. Even if it is just a 5ft step, use it. Move closer to PCs who use ranged attacks if possible. Don’t get trapped in a corner, unable to move.
Attack each PC at least once, in melee if possible.
Demons often have the ability to summon more demons. If you use this option, either use demons that are very simple to run (don’t have any special abilities to keep track of) or have the main demon retreat from the fight until the PCs have defeated the fodder.
Give the PCs something to throw/knock off the side of the ship. (see previous note)
Charge the Wizard. It is worth the Attacks of Opportunity just to see the look of terror on the wizard’s face. Summoned minions are great for this.
Some demons have the ability to Teleport, or Dimension Door (see Keep Moving).
If the PCs have been hitting the baddie for 5 rounds and they haven’t reduced the demon’s hit points to below half, start doubling all the damage that the demon takes.
Geek things we are excited about:
Clayton – Dune movies and RPG
Bird deterrent system that uses frickin’ laser beams
Hayley – Matsuricon and Heather Willard Photography
God of War (2018) video game
Lanina – RWBY Volume 6
Costa Rica’s push to be carbon-neutral
Visit Costa Rica
KD – Godzilla animated movies on Netflix,
Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters
Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle
High Noon (1952)
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September 02, 2018Episode 51: Established IPs
https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/alienfamiliar.files.wordpress.com/2018/08/afp-episode-51-established-ips.mp3
Download the episode here
Hosts: Clayton, Beth, Hayley, KD
In this episode we discuss the advantages and pitfalls of playing in an established intellectual property
Things we reference
Matilda of Tuscany
Matilda (1996 film)
Supernatural RPG by Margaret Weis Productions
Geek things we are interested in
Clayton – The Manual short film
KD – How It Ends on Netflix
Stardew Valley videogame
Hayley – Little Witch Academia anime series
Hayley’s Instagram
Beth – The Bleeding Edge documentary on Netflix
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August 19, 2018Episode 50: Keeping it Fresh
https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/alienfamiliar.files.wordpress.com/2018/08/afp-episode-50-keeping-things-fresh.mp3
Download the episode here
Hosts: Clayton, Nina, a jackass named KP, and Jordan,
In this episode we discuss how to keep a long-running campaign interesting and fresh
Things we mention:
The Quiet Year
Savage Worlds Beasts & Barbarians campaign setting
Geek things:
Clayton – Liquid water on Mars
Nina – The Quiet Year tabletop game
KP – Super Mario Bros. 3
Jordan – 42,000 year old nematodes thawed and returned to life
Dark Tourist on Netflix
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August 05, 2018Episode 49: The Worst Parts of Being GM
https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/alienfamiliar.files.wordpress.com/2018/08/afp-episode-49-worst-parts-of-being-gm.mp3
Download the episode here
Hosts: Clayton, Jordan, KP. Hayley, KD
In this episode, we discuss the worst parts of being a GM
Things we reference
Matt Parker and Trey Stone – Not “and then,” use “therefore”
Doodle Polls for getting anonymous feedback
Things we are interested in
Clayton – The Last Laugh documentary
Youtube series by Steve Shives: Trek, Actually
Hayley – The Quiet Year
KD – Movie The Death of Stalin
Movie The Assassin’s Code
Jordan – Youtube channel Dust
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July 22, 2018Episode 48 Good on paper, but bad in execution Pt2
https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/alienfamiliar.files.wordpress.com/2018/07/afp-episode-48-good-on-paper-but-bad-in-execution-part-2.mp3
Download the episode here
Hosts: Clayton, KP, Hayley, Lanina, KD
In this episode, we continue out talk about the ideas we thought were going to be good, but ended up bad with a focus on ideas from the player’s perspective
Geek things we are interested in
Hayley – video game Detroit: Become Human
Lanina – Makey Makey
Raspberry Pi
video game Unravel 2
KD – video games Resident Evil 2 remake
Kingdom Hearts 3
Devil May Cry 5
Cyberpunk 2077
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
KP – Ex Machina comic book
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July 08, 2018 Episode 47: Good on paper, but bad in execution
https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/alienfamiliar.files.wordpress.com/2018/07/afp-episode-47-good-on-paper-but-bad-in-execution.mp3
Download the episode here
Hosts: Clayton, KP, Hayley, Lanina, and KD
In this episode, we talk about the ideas we thought were going to be good, but ended up bad
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June 24, 2018Episode 46: Time Travel
https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/alienfamiliar.files.wordpress.com/2018/06/afp-episode-46-time-travel.mp3
Download the episode here
Hosts: Clayton, Beth, KP, and KD
In this episode we discuss how to have time travel in your game
Geek things we are excited about:
KD – Matthew Colville on Youtube
KP – All Powerful Sun Goddess band
Clayton – Dead Ideas podcast
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June 10, 2018Episode 45: Characters with Mental Illness
https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/alienfamiliar.files.wordpress.com/2018/06/afp-episode-45-characters-with-mental-illnesses.mp3
Download the episode here
Hosts: Clayton and Beth
In this episode we discuss how to rp characters with mental illness
Things we talk about:
Maslow’ Hierarchy of Needs
The book Girl, Interrupted by Susan Kaysen
The book Voluntary Madness by Norah Vincent
The book The Quiet Room by Lori Schiller and Amanda Bennett
The book Stuff by Gail Steketee and Randy Frost
Anything written by Oliver Sacks
The book The Center Cannot Hold by Elyn R. Saks
The book An Unquiet Mind by Kay Redfield Jamison
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May 27, 2018Episode 44: Playing in Sandboxes
https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/alienfamiliar.files.wordpress.com/2018/05/afp-episode-44-playing-in-sandboxes.mp3
Download the episode here
Hosts: Clayton, Beth, Nina, KP, Lanina, and KD
In this episode we discuss playing in sandbox games and playing with emergent stories.
Things we reference this episode:
KP’s undergrad thesis on storytelling in Open World video games
Geek things we are excited about
KP – Sam-E supplements
Lanina – Origin of Salisbury Steak
KD – Paradox Con – which is over with for this year
Clayton – MRI of a German man speaking, a male singing, and a female singing
What We Do In Shadows tv series
Comrade Detective
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May 13, 2018Episode 43: Dilemmas
https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/alienfamiliar.files.wordpress.com/2018/05/afp-episode-43-dilemmas.mp3
Download the episode here
Hosts: Clayton, Beth, Nina, KD, and KP
In this episode we discuss dilemmas, moral quandaries, devil’s bargains, hard choices, tough decisions, no-win situations, zero-sum games, Catch-22s, and the Kobayashi Maru
Things we mention:
Legacy, a Zelda fan film
Geek things we are interested in
KP – Seedship game
KP & KD – Clannad visual novel
Nina – Southern Fried Poetry Slam
Rustbelt Poetry Festival
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A podcast that gives heuristics-driven advice on tabletop roleplaying gaming

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Alien Familiar RPG Podcast

Alien Familiar RPG Podcast episodes

About Alien Familiar RPG Podcast