Q&A

[Makofan]

A couple of questions:

How heavy are M-U/Clerical spellbooks going to be? (See also here).

How heavy are spell scrolls going to be?

How are you going to handle burning oil? Will multiple flasks of burning oil on the same target have any additional effect?

What will be the effect of Holy/Unholy water?

M-U/Cleric spellbooks - Encumbrance 10 lbs per book (1 book per level). Dimensions "24" x 18" x 1.5" roughly. You can keep them in your lodgings

Spell scrolls - negligible, but let's say 1 lb due to shape/size

Oil will do 1d6 per round. A flask will flare up and burn for 1d6 rounds. Multiple flasks will just add to duration

Holy water will burn Undead for 1d6 damage per round. This damage will last 1d6 rounds. Multiple Holy Waters will do additional damage, unlike oil flasks

[Makofan]

Q: What can/should I expect in this game?

In my Verbosh campaign, I had two TPK's. Expect to lose a lot of characters in the beginning. I find that if you can get to level 2, casualties reduce dramatically, as good play starts to triumphs bad luck.

[waysoftheearth]

Will mercenaries and/or general hirelings be available to us before play begins?

If yes, can we take some on as part of our starting fit out?

[Makofan]

Will mercenaries and/or general hirelings be available to us before play begins?

If yes, can we take some on as part of our starting fit out?

yes, there will be some hirelings and desperate mercenaries hanging about to hire. If you have the money, you can start with them

Ordinary (porters/torch bearers) 2 sp per day.

Footmen: 1 gp per day
Armored footmen: 2 gp per day
Missile footmen: 15 sp per day

Retainers:
Only the lowest level player types will be seeking employment and these will not be tempted for any offer worth less than 100 gp. Dwarfs desire especially gold, elves and magic-users desire spells and magic items, clerics desire crusades and places to worship, and so on. I will not check for retainer availability until a player has hit heroic type status (3 HD), at which point their reputation will attract people

[waysoftheearth]

Footmen: 1 gp per day
Armored footmen: 2 gp per day
Missile footmen: 15 sp per day

These fees differ from the standard DD fees. Is that intentional?

[Makofan]

Footmen: 1 gp per day
Armored footmen: 2 gp per day
Missile footmen: 15 sp per day

These fees differ from the standard DD fees. Is that intentional?

Yes

I just could not fathom that a footman would get the same pay as a porter or torch bearer. The pay is still criminally low. 10 gp gets five front line fighters for a dungeon delve. That should turn out to be a good investment

[waysoftheearth]

I just could not fathom that a footman would get the same pay as a porter or torch bearer. The pay is still criminally low.

Yes, the basic pay rates are low (unless the player wants to improve loyalty by paying more!); that has always been a feature of OD&D.

However, a basic footman earns double the torchbearer's rate (4 gp per month compared to 2 gp per month). Perhaps more importantly--an ordinary hireling can be had for a single day for a few pieces of silver, while a mercenary must be paid for a minimum period of one month.

By hiring mercenaries at a daily rate, they are significantly cheaper to us

[Makofan]

I just could not fathom that a footman would get the same pay as a porter or torch bearer. The pay is still criminally low.

Yes, the basic pay rates are low (unless the player wants to improve loyalty by paying more!); that has always been a feature of OD&D.

However, a basic footman earns double the torchbearer's rate (4 gp per month compared to 2 gp per month). Perhaps more importantly--an ordinary hireling can be had for a single day for a few pieces of silver, while a mercenary must be paid for a minimum period of one month.

By hiring mercenaries at a daily rate, they are significantly cheaper to us

Ah, I didn't see the minimum of one month. We'll use the book values then. Thanks for helping me with the intent of the rules

[sully]

Since arrows and bolts are for sale and sling stones are not, can I assume there's essentially a limitless supply of them in the dungeon? Or should I bring some along from outdoors?

Do my +1 to missile attacks from DEX and +3 to hurled missile attacks as a halfling stack when I use a sling? +4 in total?

[waysoftheearth]

Do my +1 to missile attacks from DEX and +3 to hurled missile attacks as a halfling stack when I use a sling? +4 in total?

It's very common to see these things stack. In fact that is the bread-and-butter of the 3rd edition game. However, the original rules do not say explicitly that this is so, nor do they explicitly say it is not.

It's my view that the original rules imply that only the highest adjustment should apply.

E.g. (from Delving Deeper now):

Spells and other magical effects will usually combine safely with one another. However, multiple enchantments with the same effect are not cumulative; only the single, most powerful effect applies.

and:

A suit of magical armor or an enchanted shield will reduce an opponent’s attack rolls by an amount equal to its adjustment. Thus, a suit of plate armor +1 will cause enemies to attack at −1, a shield +2 will cause enemies to attack at −2, and so on. If a character wearing magical armor also carries an enchanted shield of greater potency, its greater adjustment is applicable on any turn he throws a 5 or 6 on a six-sided die.

Enjoy!