Wizards of the Coast Announces The Dungeon Masters Guild
Hello all and welcome back to Nerdarchy. Today I want to talk about the Dungeon Masters Guild that Wizards recently announced. You can view their announcement article here. If you want to head strait to the guild and start adding to your Dungeons and Dragons 5E Library you can go here.
So if you have no idea what I am talking about let me explain. By now you had to have heard the news about WoTC releasing the Open Gaming License for 5th edition. The OGL for 3rd brought so much new product and producers that it was great for the industry. Not only did we get new content but it also brought new names to the forefront. Correct me if I am wrong but this is where Mike Mearls was discovered and he is one of the big wigs of 5th edition, so thanks OGL.
What is the Dungeon Masters Guild?
Dungeon Crate brings RPG loot to your front door every month
There seems to be a subscription box service for just about everything nowadays, from crafts to wines to all kinds of foods and more. There are even a number of different subscription boxes for the nerd or geek in all of us. But what about tabletop role playing gamers?
Before January 18, the pickings seemed pretty slim, but that was the launch date for Dungeon Crate, a monthly subscription box service with a focus on role players and the games we love.
What are subscription boxes?
Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition – A Return to Ravenloft
Hello Nerdarchists and RPG enthusiasts. I am sure by now you have heard the wonderful new of the release of the Curse of Strahd. Players get to be sucked into the evil world of Ravenloft and forced to contend with the evil power that is Count Strahd von Zarovich. You can read the full article here.
Will You Descend in Ravenloft and Deal with Strahd?
Here is an excerpt. “Heroes from the Forgotten Realms and other D&D worlds can easily be drawn into Strahd’s cursed land. Once there, they must contend with the horrors of Barovia. Its people are melancholy, misshapen and grotesque, living in fear of the wolves and other creatures that serve Strahd’s evil will.
Multi-Class Character Builds in Dungeons & Dragons 5e (The Warlock)
Hello fellow Nerdarchists, Art here. I’m back with the next installment of my series Multi-Class Character Builds in Dungeons & Dragons 5e. If you missed my previous article on the Sorcerer just click HERE.
I’m going to take up some space and talk a bit about the Warlock in general. First I think the class itself is a unique design with its’ spell-like abilities built in aka the Eldritch Invocations gained at second level. These abilities allow characters to come up with very interesting tricks and techniques. The patron selection also adds a variety of interesting mechanics as well, making the Warlock a great utility tool in party of adventures. The third way a warlock can be diverse is their Pact selection out of the Pact of the Tomb, Chain and Blade, giving a final score in a very diverse character class. Lastly with the Warlock able to regain spell slots on only a short rest, making this class quite durable.
How do You Build a 5e Warlock?
My little secret: I skip D&D editions
Cover of Player’s Handbook, AD&D or D&D 1e, via Amazon
Role playing games, specifically D&D, came into my life in about 1980. I say “about” because I can’t remember the exact date, though I know it wasn’t later and seems unlikely it would have been earlier. It all began when my junior high school started a Dungeons & Dragons club, and being a fan of fantasy literature, I made sure to attend the first meeting where character sheets were handed out. At the time I had not been aware of the game, but I figured the terms “Dungeons” and “Dragons” meant it would be of interest to me. Unfortunately that club didn’t last long because of some bad press the game received, but it was too late for me. I was hooked.
Mowing yards for money back then, I saved up enough to start collecting all the core books as well as many modules and the occasional supplemental rules book. First edition was king then, and the game had the word “Advanced” in its title. I remember I payed $15 for my first Dungeon Master’s Guide and $12 each for the Player’s Handbook and the Monster Manual; I’m not sure, but I believe the adventure modules were between $7 and $10, and that includes a lot of modules produced by companies other than TSR, the publishers of D&D back then.
Multi-Class Character Builds in Dungeons & Dragons 5e The Sorcerer
Hello fellow Nerdarchests, Art here. I’m back with the next installment of my series Multi-Class Character Builds in Dungeons & Dragons 5e.
As usual I’d like to take a moment to talk about the class in general. With the Sorcerer my personally feelings are mixed of sort. On one hand you basically have a Wizard and on the other hand you have a variation of the Wizard. But, after a closer look and a rows through the spell lists I’ve come to find Sorcerers to be very diverse as a class. Able to handle things in a multitude of ways due to their Sorcery Point ability as well as any abilities from their Blood Lines.
Multi-Class Character Builds in Dungeons & Dragons 5e (The Druid)
Hello fellow Nerdarchests, Art here. I’m back with the third installment of my series Multi-Class Character Builds in Dungeons & Dragons 5e. If you missed my previous article on the Cleric just click HERE.
Today we are going to be covering the wonderful menagerie of… The Druid
As always I’d like to take a few lines to address the class as a whole. The Druid in 5e is very well thought out, but from a supplement stand point not allot of love has been given to them as a class. This means they currently are pigeon-holed into one major type of single class character, where with this article I hope to shed some light on things you can do to “Spice” up your Druid and make them more interesting as a character.
English not your first language? Use that for RPG fun
Monsters of Faerun, Japanese language edition, D&D 3.5, 2004
One of the great experiences of taking part in tabletop role playing games online is that you get to interact with people from different cultures, often who do not have English as their first language. The roots of tabletop RPGs are mainly in countries which have English as a common tongue, and no few of us gamers were brought up on English and are mostly familiar gaming with others who speak English, so it can be interesting and sometimes a challenge to game with those who come from a different background.
That being said, there are plenty of online games taking place in non-English languages despite many rules sets having not been officially translated, including the most recent edition of Dungeons & Dragons. A quick look around various sites which are home to online RPGs can lead one to campaigns in Spanish, German, and any number of other languages. Still, it seems games in English are quite common, perhaps the most common.
Even the English language has its variations
Ty’s Gaming Resolutions for the 2016 New Year
In a matter of days it’s going to be a new year, and like the beginning of every new year, many of us make resolutions. Some of us will try to lose weight or quit smoking. Others will try to be nicer to people or maybe promise to put money into savings. Me? This year I’m going to try to be a better tabletop role-player. How do I hope to accomplish this? By following my resolutions below.
Expanding my horizons in the new year, Part I
Are you going to watch the ball drop to kick in the new year?
I have a tendency to find a role-playing game I like, then stick with it and nothing else for months, even years. Right now I’m enjoying Fifth Edition D&D, so I’ve been playing lots of it. See, I’ve been gaming for 35 years, off and on, and I’ve played all kinds of systems, some good, some bad, and I guess now in my forties I’ve grown a bit … maybe “lazy” would be the right word, though I prefer “skeptical.” I’m usually not interested in learning yet another system, especially if it’s one which I know I won’t be playing more than maybe once or twice. I need to break this habit. There are lots of great games out there which I’ve yet to experience, and a few which I’ve only experienced once or twice. So, one of my gaming resolutions is to play more games that are new to me, to enjoy the experience of different game systems. I’m especially interested in trying out some zombie survival games.
Expanding my horizons, Part II
A Visit from St. Cuthbert (aka ’Twas the Night Before Gaming)
St. Cuthbert of Greyhawk
’Twas the night before gaming,
and all through the castle
not a beastie was stirring,
nor nary a vassal.
All the spadroons
lay stacked by the lair,
in hopes that St. Cuthbert
soon would be there;
The goblins lay drunk
atop of their beds,
While visions of raiding
stole through their heads;
Mama sheathed her blades
in scabbards with a slap,
While I tugged down on
my helm’s arming cap.
While out in the bailey
there arose such a clatter,
I sprang up with my sword
to spy what had been shattered.
Away to a turret
I darted in a flash,
then charged to the gatehouse
when I heard another clash.
Multi-Class Character Builds in Dungeons & Dragons 5e The Rogue
Hello fellow Nerdarchists, Art here. I’m back with the next installment of my series Multi-Class Character Builds in Dungeons & Dragons 5e. If you missed my previous article on the Paladin just click HERE.
As usual I’d like to take a moment to talk about the class in general. The Rogue in D&D 5e is much more diverse than we’ve seen in previous editions of D&D, with the addition of the Sword Coast Adventures Guide we are given several unique way to play them such as assassins or swashbucklers. The Back-Stab dice scale nicely in D&D 5e making the Rogue a good choice to bind other classes with adding flare and abilities that make the character quite interesting.
Back-Stabbing with the rogue!
2015 gamer gift suggestions for the holidays
By the time you read this, Hanukkah will have passed, but Christmas and Kwanzaa and other holidays are still more than a week away, which means there is still time to purchase presents for your favorite tabletop role players and other gamers. But what to get your friends? Rulebooks and dice are the easy answer, but likely your pals will already have those. If you want to get them a different type of present, check out some possibilities below.
Something chocolate this way rolls
Never Tell Me The Odds|3 of the Most Epic Uses of the Lucky feat| 5th Edition Dungeons and Dragons
“Never tell me the odds!”, Han Solo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Lucky feat may draw a collective groan from many a 5th edition dungeons and dragons players and Dungeon Masters alike and who can blame them? Following the errata, a player can turn the Disadvantage mechanic into “Super Advantage” or a foes Advantage into “Super Disadvantage” since it was clarified that the Lucky feat allows you to roll an extra die and choose the desired result before success is determined. If a player turns this feat into simply, “I roll more dice”, well yeah, that is in fact incredibly lame, but I promise you this: if you make your use of the Lucky feat narratively cool, something that characterizes and defines your character, no one will bat an eye at your use of the feat- they’ll be looking-out for the next time you do something heroic, something badass!
A part of the power of the Lucky feat is actually in the exploitation of circumstances that would grant Disadvantage- you can use the Lucky feat to do really cool, really epic feats of awesomeness. Utilizing the Lucky feat will actually have you fishing for Disadvantage! You could use the feat to make neigh impossible trick shots, death defying acrobatics, or pick a lock with your eyes closed! And also remember that you can turn your foe’s Advantage, that attack that should have inevitably hit into “Super Disadvantage”. With that in mind, let’s look at the situations or conditions that would cause you Disadvantage or grant your enemy Advantage:
Multi-Class Character Builds in Dungeons & Dragons 5e The Paladin
Hello fellow Nerdarchists, Art here. I’m back with the next installment of my series Multi-Class Character Builds in Dungeons & Dragons 5e. If you missed my previous article on the Monk just click HERE.
Today we are upholding our vows with…the Paladin!
AS always I’d like to talk a little about the class and its’ uses in multi classing. First I think the paladin can be the most effective “Tank” in the game due to the new content in the Sword Coast Adventure’s Guide with the Oath of the Crow Paladin class path. Being able to force opponents to attack only you can be quite a strong ability. When multi-classing you can combine the Paladin’s ability to smite with other class features to create some insane damage combos as I’ll give you a few here. Also the Paladin can be a great healer with their “Lay On Hands” abilities to keep other characters up in a fight even if its only healing for a few points at a time just to get them up and out of danger. It also lets the Paladin be very hard to kill due to their ability to cast Cure Wounds as well, combined with their Lay on Hands. Now on with the builds…
Gamescience providing precision dice for more than 40 years
Louis Zocchi at GenCon 2014. / Photo courtesy of Gamescience
For those old enough to remember the earliest days of Dungeons & Dragons and other tabletop role playing games, the dice available often were of lackluster quality. Sometimes soft but brittle around the edges, the dice had a tendency to flake or dent easily, not only making them appear less than appealing, but also damaging their statistical usefulness. Even today there are players who are interested not only in the attractiveness of the dice they purchase, but the accuracy of those dice.
