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You goddamn liars (lemmy.dbzer0.com)
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[-] justdaveisfine@piefed.social 78 points 4 days ago

If I'm being honest, I ignore the weight values for items unless it specifically comes up or if a player starts hoarding things aggressively.

[-] collapse_already@lemmy.ml 3 points 2 days ago

Exactly. Want to haul the locked chest back to town? Then its size matters. Want to pick up a dagger and some coins? Who cares, we're trying to have fun here not micromanage inventory.

[-] dejected_warp_core@lemmy.world 23 points 4 days ago

Yup. Same goes for temp/hunger/thirst. Unless the environment creates a situation that directly challenges that, like arctic conditions, desert, underwater, extended covert ops etc., these things do not serve the story and get in the way.

Plus, a bag of holding neatly side-steps a lot of encumbrance problems and I firmly believe that's why it's been a part of D&D lore since at least 2nd ed.

Meanwhile, if the table wants to go deep simulation on all this, the rules are there for that. But I wish everyone good luck with fighting monsters up close in a cave where weapons bigger than daggers are too large to swing, and heavy armor too bulky to be practical.

[-] burble@lemmy.dbzer0.com 10 points 4 days ago

Yeah, encumbrance, rations, and even sleep can be too crunchy to deal with all the time. We're making so little progress as it is! But they can be nice as occasional plot points.

[-] Lianodel@ttrpg.network 5 points 4 days ago

I do enjoy the tactical side of inventory management, but that's only for a specific kind of game, and even then, slot-based inventory works so much smoother.

[-] Xenny@lemmy.world 10 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

I imagine that D&D uses a similar encumbrance system to project zomboid. Those values don't only represent weight, but the actual "encumbrance" of the item which sort of takes into account weight, the volume of the object and how awkward it is to hold.

[-] Jumi@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

But even then it feels too heavy for rope

[-] melsaskca@lemmy.ca 3 points 2 days ago

Alexander could easily cut through that bullshit. /s

[-] vzqq@lemmy.blahaj.zone 44 points 4 days ago

Off topic, but imperial instruments always crack me up, with the fractional displays.

[-] SmoothOperator@lemmy.world 18 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

That's insane. Is eigths the minimal resolution, or can it do stuff like "15 and 76/89ths of a pound"?

[-] wer2@lemmy.zip 16 points 4 days ago

Usually it is by powers of 2 and only up to 64ths at most (least?). So you might see 3/8, 7/16, 15/32, or 37/64, but never 5/7 or 23/24. Also, usually the fraction is reduced, so the numerator will always be odd (1/4 and not 2/8).

[-] KeenFlame@feddit.nu 12 points 4 days ago

Well that's reassuring... slowly backs away hope .. hope they stay odd, get the great fractions of the empire! They are,,, certainly something, wow.. yeah .. i gotta go but

[-] wer2@lemmy.zip 2 points 3 days ago

I wish it was all metric; no defense of it here.

[-] seaplant@slrpnk.net 6 points 4 days ago

Yeah come on 76/89ths would be silly because 89 is prime and 76 is even, it would obviously be rounded to 55/64ths

[-] Clent@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 3 days ago

Drug dealers need to know it's an 1/8th?

[-] Tar_alcaran@sh.itjust.works 26 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

I once bought 2cm thick hemp rope for reenactment purposes (can't recommend, it's worse than nylon and costs more and maintaining it sucks).

I don't have any spare, but I chucked some on a scale, and it seems to be about 250 grams per meter, for about 8.5lbs per 50ft.

So D&D rope is even thicker, or its tarred (which you absolutely should do if you dislike drying rope).

[-] BanMe@lemmy.world 13 points 3 days ago

Oh come on everyone loves maintaining their ropes, it's a classic hobby. Wake up, churn your butter, maintain your rope, then it's time to roast some chicory for your morning coffee.

[-] edgemaster72@lemmy.world 1 points 2 days ago

Boo, that stuff's so boring. When are we going to tan some leather?

[-] yakko@feddit.uk 8 points 3 days ago

That's an afternoon coffee lmao

[-] Tar_alcaran@sh.itjust.works 1 points 3 days ago

My cats agree with you. Having musty, wet hemp ropes laying around is apparently the best thing ever.

[-] wieson@feddit.org 14 points 4 days ago

The numbers are so weird man

[-] phase@lemmy.8th.world 15 points 3 days ago

It's fantasy system, not metric system 🧌

[-] Susaga@sh.itjust.works 18 points 4 days ago

My assumption is they meant a much thicker rope, but yeah, definitely not as heavy as they say.

[-] moody@lemmings.world 13 points 4 days ago

Yeah I wouldn't even call that rope. Cord, perhaps, but it seems too thin to be called rope.

Modern climbing ropes are still less than 10lbs at four times the length. Not sure how the density compares, but it's not 4 times denser either.

[-] EonNShadow@pawb.social 24 points 4 days ago

Modern climbing ropes are rated for much heavier than 800lb as well. Iirc the ones I used in school were rated for a couple thousand pounds.

Nylon is a hell of a drug

Nylon isn’t even the best polymer we have for rope making :p

[-] EonNShadow@pawb.social 4 points 4 days ago

Oh my comment had 0 research put into it but if you have fun chemistry/climbing facts feel free to sound off

[-] testfactor@lemmy.world 4 points 4 days ago

Thicker rope would presumably have a higher test value though, and it seems that most people interpret the hempen rope in 5e as being under 800-test.

[-] mossberg590@lemmy.world 11 points 4 days ago
  1. Braided, not twisted.
  2. Manila not hemp.
  3. Go ahead and try to climb that rope with bare hands.
[-] DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social -2 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

Kids do it literally every day in gym class, and sometimes on the way back down they do learn some valuable lessons about abrasion and doing things you've seen on TV.

I do think there's an unspoken assumption for adventurers that they wear gloves for this and many more reasons.

[-] AEsheron@lemmy.world 3 points 3 days ago

Those rope is unlikely to be able to support a fully kitted adventurer though. Ropes rated for the kinds of weights adventurers often deal with will be at least in the neighborhood of the listed weight, accordang to a similar thread a while back. IIRC one comparable rope weighed something like 4.4 pounds at 50 feet.

[-] mossberg590@lemmy.world 10 points 4 days ago

Those types people climb are much larger in diameter. The thinner the rope the more difficult to hold onto it.

[-] DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social -3 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

This is going to surprise you, but the ropes adventurers would use and gym ropes aren't the same thing either other than their ability to rip the skin off your hands.

Is this the exact kind they would use?

No, but it's close enough to point out the weights listed for gear are basically arbitrary.

[-] KeenFlame@feddit.nu 3 points 4 days ago

Are the adventurers in the room with us now? Can they tell us what rope they use on their adventures?

[-] DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social -1 points 3 days ago

That you think this is a clever response says a lot.

[-] KeenFlame@feddit.nu 0 points 2 days ago

Who thinks that? Are these the same voices or is this another

[-] acockworkorange@mander.xyz 2 points 3 days ago

That's why you go with Traveller's displacement Tons rule.

this post was submitted on 28 Jan 2026
393 points (98.8% liked)

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