Star Wars The Force Awakens – Beginner Game Review – More in the Box than You think
Hello fellow Nerdarchist and Star Wars enthusiasts. It is ground breaking time here at Nerdarchy. We 
have been blessed with getting an advanced copy of the Force Awakens beginner game from Fantasy Flight games. It is not even available to pre-order and we already have our copy. This is a first to get a review copy from a major publishing house like Fantasy Flight Games, so a big Thank you to them.
Dave and I each have our own copies of each of the other box sets. You can check out the reviews I did on them here: Star Wars Edge of the Empire beginner game, Star Wars Age of Rebellion beginner game & Star Wars Force and Destiny beginner game.
Taken from the website:
Enjoy all-new adventures in the Star Wars universe with The Force Awakens™ Beginner Game!
The perfect entry into the Star Wars roleplaying experience for players of all skill levels, The Force Awakens Beginner Game introduces a complete, learn-as-you-go adventure that carries you from the sands of Jakku deep into the heart of a mystery that could change the course of the galaxy.
Note: Unlike our other Beginner Games, The Force Awakens Beginner Game will not be followed by a new Star Wars RPG game line. Instead, it draws upon the core mechanics shared by Star Wars®: Age of Rebellion™, Star Wars®: Edge of the Empire™, and Star Wars®: Force and Destiny™. Players interested in continuing their Star Wars adventures can do so through any of these fully compatible systems.
“Island In The Storm”- Out of The Box D&D Encounter #12
5, pages 108 and 109 have two great ones. Each item on these tables can generate a good encounter. Mixing them can generate a great one.
Torches: Not so Bright an Idea!
Torches were a useful thing to a warrior of the past. They allowed for the easy transport of relatively 
strong flame, which could be useful for several things including the rather deadly and destructive use it had in burning towns and buildings and such. This was especially useful in the past, where fire fighting was a fairly uphill battle (and still is to some degree) and when a single fire could burn entire cities at times. The point of this article is not to say torches are useless but to say instead we’ve all been using them incorrectly, be they in movies, games, or just about anything else. Essentially, torches were many things but they were not especially good at lighting your way.
Torches do not make good light sources nor, more importantly, did people of the past (for our sake lets say medieval people since this site and myself mostly talk about fantasy games) attempt to use them for light very often at all. They last about thirty minutes, create a massive amount of smoke, and there are better options, namely lanterns, lamps, and candles. Torches created so much smoke you would likely soon die if you took it deep underground since you would fill up the entire cavern/dungeon with smoke. Also note though that night blindness is very real, and torches are an undirected bright light that constantly shines in your eyes.
It would be extremely hard to see anything beyond twenty feet or so. One might argue that in a fantasy setting, like the ones many of us play games set in, the components making up torches are made of better and less smokey (and less smelly) materials than the smelly tar that made up a lot of what made historical torches flammable (modern torches are different). To which I say….fair enough and I have no counterpoint except to say games like DnD seem to at least imply their real world items are supposed to be historical and only their magical/fantasy items are intended to be taken as completely made up.
Blast from the Past: Big Trouble in Little China
[caption id="attachment_11850" align="aligncenter" width="656"] Jack Burton, center, has plenty of pals backing him up as he prepares to face down the evils of Lo Pan. And remember, if they're not back by dawn, call the president.[/caption] This month 30 years ago, a movie decades ahead of...
“Rube’s Cube”- Out of the box D&D Encounters #11
Out of the box D&D Encounters Introduction:
Sometimes an encounter occurs because fo a single “what if”. It can lead in all sorts of unexpected directions. Imagine an illusionist’s castle, dungeon, or other lair. Imagine an environment filed with puzzles, tricks, and other dangers. Within such a confine, “Rube’s Cube” can exist.
For this encounter, I wanted to use an under-apprecited monster (ooze) in a way other than a hit point sponge or ambush predator. What followed was a series of “what if” questions.
What if a normally non-spellcasting creature had access to a spell or spell-like effect? In this case, I thought of Mirror Image.
No item to my knowledge creates such an effect outside of a ring of spell storing with the correct spell, so a little extra creativity was called for. What if you made such an item? In the end, you take what would normally be an ambush predator who may not survive more than three rounds, and you’ve created a mystical shell game with one ooze and one item. What if you take that creature, and that magic item, and place them in a room that is custom made for both in a fun way? Hmmm…
And so “Rube’s Cube” was born.
Environment: Dungeon
Suggested level: 2-3
Titanic Miniatures for your Tabletop Roleplaying Game
Not everyone uses miniatures when you game but many of us do. How amazing is it when the DM places 
an amazing model on the table and the mini is so much bigger than the party. Do you worry that this is the time that the DM is finally going to bring you down?
Imagine how much more terrifying it will be when the mini is of colossal size. Yeah those of us playing 5th edition know that they have removed this size category from the game but gargantuan is only limited by your imagination. I for one love the large size.
I am a proud owner of the Collosal Red Dragon released by WOTC all those years ago. You can Grab one here. The red dragon is big enough that a standard size mini fits in its raised claws. I typically display it that way for humors sake. Dragons are a staple of the D&D game and any fantasy tabletop roleplaying game. With that it is always great to have that looming threat that you can drop that mini on the table.
Until recently there have not bee many options other than this colossal red. Either you had to have something that was a reasonable facsimile or you had to do painstaking work to make your own. Based on the conversations with many gamers and DMs over the years there are far fewer DMs out that that take the time to make individual minis of that size to use as a single encounter. even if they think that they will get to use it again later. Do not get me wrong your crafters are out there. I have seen some spectacular work, but in our diverse niche you are not the norm.
Blast from the Past: Star Frontiers
[caption id="attachment_11744" align="aligncenter" width="776"] My original Star Frontiers: Alpha Dawn books and maps.[/caption] A little history [caption id="attachment_11746" align="alignright" width="320"] The original Star Frontiers Referee's Screen.[/caption] In the early 1980s, the world seemed suddenly crazed for everything science fiction, especially space opera. Star Wars had been around for...
“A Standing Warning”- Out of the Box D&D Encounters #10
description and setting can establish the right mood and put the players on edge. This can allow the DM to set up other encounters or drop hints from their campaign setting. Such encounters may just be red herrings intended to throw characters of the trail or to make them think.Dungeon Explore – Tabletop RPG Tile Card Deck on Kickstarter
How would you like to be able to just build your dungeon room by room as you go? Would you like visual
cues to help you design your dungeon while the group is not around? Well now you can with this easy deck of cards. They are double sided with a standard 3 by 3 tile on one side and a more interesting side on the other.
The Dungeon Explore Card Deck is a deck of 48 square tile cards each printed with detailed dungeon artwork. The cards use a 3×3 grid that can be interconnected by passageways and doorways to create an endless variety of combinations. Whether you play Dungeons and Dragons, Pathfinder, or any other fantasy tabletop RPG system, this portable and affordable deck of cards will integrate right into your game.
While GMs are free to imagine up their own ways to use the Dungeon Explore Card Deck, here are a couple suggested ways to try them out.
Quick Encounters
Running a D&D game off the cuff – it can be easy
[caption id="attachment_10844" align="alignright" width="511"] Does this Dungeon Master/wizard look panicked?[/caption] So you’re the Dungeon Master. There’s a game of Dungeons & Dragons in an hour or two. Unfortunately you’ve been busy all week and have not had time to prepare. Don’t panic. You can still run your game...
Matt Mercer Adding the Gunslinger to 5E D&D
First off a thank you to Matt Mercer of Critical Role fame for giving us this fighter archetype 5th Edition Dungeons and Dragons. A little while back he put together the gunslinger and put it up on the DMs Guild where you can buy it for pay what you want- Here.
Nerdarchy did a review of the gunslinger on YouTube.
“Mirror Mirror” Out of the Box D&D Encounter # 9
Introduction:
This encounter brings up two points that are commonly overlooked.
When anyone makes a campsite, there’s always some kind of preparation. No one simply makes a fire. There’s wood collection, digging or preparing a fire pit, and the like. These activities provide an opportunity for a DM to drop clues or create an encounter. Taking such common activities and making them uncommon can change how players behave during these moments. It might even make them look for things in new ways in other settings, making clues easier to pass on.
Secondly, players, especially experienced ones, are jaded when it comes to monster motivations. Goblins are thieves. Orcs are savages. Undead are mindless. Sometimes it pays to make a player question what they know. It makes them think in new ways and consider new directions. Overall, it may help them grow as a player. Many assumptions are correct for good reasons. Taking these assumptions as a solid rule all of the time can lead players into traps.
The following encounter can turn what would normally be a cut-and-dried combat encounter into a social one. It questions judgement, honesty, motivations and greed.
For your consideration, I present…
Out of The Box D&D Encounter #9 – “Mirror Mirror”
Environment: Wilderness -Forest/Swamp
Suggested Level: 4
One night as the party settles to camp for the night, the normal activities with making camp are interrupted with a strange discovery. As the party makes their fire pit, they uncover a small hand mirror that was buried in a shallow home of leaves, dead grass, or whatever surface in which they are digging. The mirror is covered in dirt and such, but once it’s cleaned up, anyone who peers into it’s reflective surface will see their reflection looking back at them – but as if they were a child version of themselves. The mirror will detect as magic, but possesses no other unusual properties. Later that night, conversations and such that occur around a campfire are added to with the distant sound of sobbing.
The (Historical) Problem with Fantasy Coinage in Dungeons and Dragons
Dungeons and Dragons (DnD) and the dozens of other games that draw inspiration from it are obviously fantasy. This fact does not stop at the elves, dragons, and magic either. While DnD picks and chooses elements of history to incorporate into its mechanics and lore, it outright rejects other parts.
For example, many pieces of the armor that various editions of DnD present are accurate enough for a game but others, such as studded armor, both never existed and would not have been beneficial had they existed (that, however, is the subject for a different article).
Another one of these less than historically accurate examples is the various coinage these games have presented over the years. Before I begin, I ask that the reader understand that the phrase "historically accurate" refers to the historical parallels DnD draws with real earthly history.
Although the game is obviously fantasy, it is set in a world bound by many of the same societal values and ideas we humans have had regarding such topics as the value of goods, services, and most importantly for this article, metals.
Firstly, DnD would have been greatly weakened by a historically accurate monetary system. Historically, money was not built on the modern system Americans use today (10 pennies equals 1 dime, 10 dimes equals 1 dollar etc.) Additionally, while American currency does not always transfer directly to other nations currency, theirs also tend to be based on a metric like system.
Blast from the Past — Transformers: The Movie
With the live action Transformers movies of the last decade it can be easy for some fans to forget the franchise was originally a cartoon series back in the 1980s, a series based upon a line of toys produced by Hasbro. Also, some fans might be too young to know about the old cartoons, and they might have missed the spectacle that was Transformers: The Movie from 1986.
“Aces High”- Out of the Box D&D Encounters
Introduction
Aerial encounters are a rare and special circumstance that require a bit more imagination than a 
standard land-based encounter. Whether by traveling on an airship of some kind, or wandering the lands of a Cloud Giant, creating encounters in the sky generally come with the assumption of a higher level foe. Dragons, griffons, wyverns, and the like always seem to come to mind. This doesn’t have to be the case. Further, attacks from above can also be applied to any environment where space is available. Consider urban rooftops, open plains, mountainous regions, and on open seas as other viable locations for an aerial attack. Massive caves and canyons could also be an unusual but perfectly allowable location for such encounters. Additionally, combining lower level foes in an interesting way can create memorable encounters.
For this encounter’s description, I will be mentioning an airship, but feel free to change the location as you need it.
For your consideration, please enjoy “Out of The Box #8 – Aces High”
Environment: Aerial/Anywhere under an open sky/where space is available
Level: 2+
A cool wind blows across the deck of the airship as it glides through broken cloud cover. The sun sets a glow upon the ship though the passing mists. Moisture glistens on the surfaces, and mists dance through the rigging.
You look up past the envelope (balloon) of the ship to examine the clouds, and strange irregular shadows appear from above. Before you can shout a warning, riders on monstrous winged creatures pass by in a flash. Crossbow bolts pepper the deck like rain, and two ceramic balls crash upon the deck, exploding into flames.
