Cross-Family Politics: Running Allies, Betrayals, and Blood Oaths
In Zoo Mafia, bullets and backroom deals go paw in paw. Crews don’t exist in a vacuum; they’re part of a living, snarling underworld where rival families share turf, trade favors, and occasionally bury the hatchet—usually in someone’s back. If you want your campaigns to feel...
The Price of Progress in Aether Skies
How Innovation Shapes—and Destroys—the Skies In the world of Aether Skies, invention is worship. The floating cities exist because someone, centuries ago, dared to bend Aether into obedience. Skyships fly because engineers refused to believe gravity was final. Lives are saved—and lost—through machines no one fully...
The Way of the Twinned Soul – Symbiote Subclass Spotlight
"Two minds. Two wills. One body. One purpose." Among monks, discipline and mastery of the self is everything. But what happens when the self is no longer singular? The Way of the Twinned Soul represents a monk who is never truly alone—bonded with a second presence,...
Delightfully Macabre: Visiting the Addams Family in Your D&D Game
There’s something darkly charming about a household where the candles are always lit, the curtains never open, and every family member has a different relationship with death.If your adventurers think they’ve seen it all — liches, vampires, haunted keeps — send them to the Addams...
Odd NPC Vendors for Your Magical World: The Clockwork Menagerie
Meet the Proprietor: Cogsworth Brindlepin, Gnome Clockwright Extraordinaire Cogsworth Brindlepin is a brass-smudged, wild-haired gnome whose spectacles constantly slide down his nose as he peers at the faintest whir of movement. His workshop-coat is stitched with dozens of small holsters — each holding a wind-up key...
Subclass Spotlight: Chaosborn Ravager (Fighter)
Under the Dome – Balaria | Live Play Subclass Reveal #4 The fifth custom subclass revealed for Under the Dome – Balaria is raw, unbridled destruction. Where the Symbiotic Engineer bends adaptation, the Domain of Grinding Flame burns with the power of chaos, The College of...
Hauntingly Kind: How Casper the Friendly Ghost Can Inspire Your Next D&D Adventure
It is now October, and you know what that means, its spooky season. To celebrate I am going to do a series of posts of drawing inspiration from some pop culture, or older pop culture to start. When most Dungeon Masters think of undead, they...
Heat & Headlines: Making Law Enforcement a Real Threat in Zoo Mafia
Every mobster in Zoo Mafia knows the truth: the job doesn’t just end when you split the loot. There’s always the long arm of the law—or in this case, the keepers—waiting in the wings, looking to put your crew back in the cages. Too many...
Faction Wars in the Skies
Playing Politics Between the Cities in Aether Skies The skies of Aether Skies are vast, but they are far from free. Every floating city survives not just on the strength of its Aether engines, but on the ambitions, secrets, and schemes of the factions that hold...
Fighter Subclass Reveal: The Symbiotic Warrior
“I am the blade, the armor, the will...
Scars That Tell a Story: Lasting Injuries in Dungeons & Dragons
Combat in Dungeons & Dragons is usually a clean affair. Heroes take hits, drop to zero, and bounce back with a long rest or a cure wounds spell. But for groups who want a grittier, more visceral game, introducing long-lasting injuries, scars, and maiming can...
Under the Dome – Cleric Subclass: Domain of the Grinding Flame
“I carry the fire that unravels worlds. In the ashes, we are remade.” Jumping in with another subclass preview for the players in my Under the Dome - Balaria game. So far we have done, Artificer, Bard, and Monk. only 2 more to go. You can...
Rethinking the Tarrasque: Alternative Lore and Storytelling Threats
The Tarrasque is the apex predator of Dungeons & Dragons—an unstoppable, city-flattening kaiju that exists in nearly every edition of the game. With horns, spines, and an unyielding hunger, it is often depicted as the ultimate “final boss” for high-level adventurers. But what if we...
Peanut Rum Shortage + Blackout = Civil War Among Animal Families
We discussed this idea on the live chat, but lets dive in a little deeper, shall we. Nothing fuels chaos in Zoo Mafia quite like scarcity. When the lights go out and the booze dries up, every animal family starts sniffing around for power, territory,...
When Haven Returned: The City of Secrets and Its Shadows
How the Reappearance of Haven Reshapes Aether Skies For generations, Haven was a ghost story. A city swallowed whole by the Curtain, that endless wall of storm and nightmare which hides the world’s deepest scars. Scholars argued if it ever existed at all. Sailors swore they...
