D&D Ideas — Crystals
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is crystals, which we discussed in our weekly live chat. We hangout every Monday evening at 8 p.m. EST at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel talk about D&D, RPGs, gaming, life and whatever nerdy stuff comes up. Speaking of crystals our Mage Forge collection includes a variety of crystals with all sorts of amazing magical properties. You can get Nerdarchy the Newsletter delivered to your inbox each week, along with updates and info on how to game with Nerdarchy plus snag a FREE GIFT by signing up here.
Pocket Full of NPCs for 5E D&D — The Reclusive Researcher
Salutations, nerds! Did your fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons party forget to take identify? Got no wizard? Need a nerd who they can go to for the cleansing of cursed items or simply require a plot hook to motivate the party delve into the ruins of an exploded wizard lab? I’ve got a character for you.
D&D Ideas — Temples
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is temples, which we discussed in our weekly live chat. We hangout every Monday evening at 8 p.m. EST on Nerdarchy Live to talk about D&D, RPGs, gaming, life and whatever nerdy stuff comes up. Speaking of temples our Shadow of Your Former Self encounter can be placed anywhere you imagine it, like an art gallery, wizard’s inner sanctum or (of course) a temple. You can get Nerdarchy the Newsletter delivered to your inbox each week, along with updates and info on how to game with Nerdarchy plus snag a FREE GIFT by signing up here.
Recognizing How 5E D&D Characters are Not Regular People
Salutations, nerds! I’m having a debate right now with one of my friend groups about why everyone in a Dungeons & Dragons world isn’t a wizard if wizards are so powerful. If people in your world can blow up a quarter of a city all at once with giant balls of fire and wipe out whole armies ten why does everyone not do this? Because the barrier of entry for being a high level spellcaster is prohibitively high for most people. Then why are so many D&D player characters spellcasters? Because D&D player characters are not regular people.
Capture the Classic Spelljammer Feel in Your 5E D&D Games
Spelljammer is coming to fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons! For years 5ED&D has expanded into Magic: The Gathering worlds, Critical Role’s Exandria and even universes like Rick & Morty and Stranger Things. However, some classic settings like Dark Sun and Planescape have yet to make an appearance. It occurs to me there might be those who aren’t familiar with Spelljammer so let’s talk about how to get the feel for the setting and how it might be used in my own campaigns.
Find Your Inspiration for Amazing RPG Experiences within DungeonMorphs
The scope of tabletop roleplaying games has never been more broad than it is right now. The system options for players are staggering and even considering the dominance of Dungeons & Dragons within this particular RPG the range of playstyles and approaches to the game are are varied as the people playing them. One aspect shared by nearly all Game Masters is preparation and even the staunchest advocate for improvisation relies on some starting point. The folks at Inkwell Ideas consistently deliver solid resources for GMs and their latest project DungeonMorphs IV aims to continue this fine tradition.
Top 10 5E D&D Homebrew Backgrounds by a Factor of Three
I know, it’s crazy. Nerditor Doug wrote so many of these but now I’ve taken over, at least for this one. Backgrounds in fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons have so many criteria so we get to see how they all stack up. But like usual we are going to look at the backgrounds and evaluate them three different ways and see which of these fan created backgrounds you want to add to your 5E D&D game.
D&D Ideas — Law Enforcement
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is law enforcement, which we discussed in our weekly live chat. We hangout every Monday evening at 8 p.m. EST on Nerdarchy Live to talk about D&D, RPGs, gaming, life and whatever nerdy stuff comes up. Speaking of crime it’s the other half of the equation in our very own Zoo Mafia RPG. We’re developing this game where you play zoo animals who secretly run criminal organizations under the noses of caretakers and tourists. You can get Nerdarchy the Newsletter delivered to your inbox each week, along with updates and info on how to game with Nerdarchy plus snag a FREE GIFT by signing up here.
Adventure the Length and Breadth of a Two Dimensional World
I am always looking for inspiration to do something other Game Masters are not especially when gaming with my kids. In addition I like incorporating my gaming supplies into the game at the table. One idea I had originated from my son’s love of Minecraft and LEGO. What if there was a place where everything was literally made of blocks and everything had 90 degree edges?
Play Your Next 5E D&D Game as a Servant of the Lord of Dead Dreams
Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel when Nerdarchists Dave and Ted develop a fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons character idea straight from Patreon. We conducted a poll to ask which Nerdarchyverse villain to revisit. Our own Lord of Dead Dreams came out as No. 1 and while we shared the insidious entity’s dream goblins at Nerdarchy the Website we thought he could use a more substantial enforcer. This Servant of the Lord of Dead Dreams 5E D&D Character Build Guide represents a dark fey knight who embodies their lord’s sinister reputation. Let’s get into it.
WizKids Throws its Hat (and Various Other Pieces and Parts) into the Kitbashing Ring
Ever since the release of plastic miniatures during the release of third edition Dungeons & Dragons I have loved collecting, using, painting and then kitbashing figures. If you are not familiar with kitbashing it has its foundation in model cars and airplanes long before us nerds who roll funny shaped dice decided to give it a go. Kitbashing means taking parts from one kit and adding them to another or salvaging parts from even outside a kit to make the model you imagine. A super famous kitbash you might not be aware of is the Death Star for the original Star Wars movie. It was put together with model kits used in new ways and new angles to give the Death Star its iconic look.
D&D Ideas — Crime
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is crime, which we discussed in our weekly live chat. We hangout every Monday evening at 8 p.m. EST on Nerdarchy Live to talk about D&D, RPGs, gaming, life and whatever nerdy stuff comes up. Speaking of crime it’s one half the equation in our very own Zoo Mafia RPG. We’re developing this game where you play zoo animals who secretly run criminal organizations under the noses of caretakers and tourists. You can get Nerdarchy the Newsletter delivered to your inbox each week, along with updates and info on how to game with Nerdarchy plus snag a FREE GIFT by signing up here.
Dragon Armies Wage War in D&D Direct Dragonlance Trailer for 5E D&D
https://youtu.be/DE69_iKAWIs The D&D Direct press kit material related to Dragonlance included only this teaser trailer. After the live streamed public event and private press events related to the astonishing deluge of announcements we'll have more details. The standout feature for me in this trailer is the...
D&D Direct Announces WizKids Spelljammer Figurines Including Gargantuan Astral Dreadnought
https://youtu.be/Isd_OhDF6_8 Coinciding with the announcement at D&D Direct about Spelljammer for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons there a whole bunch of incredible new miniatures and figurines from WizKids. This highlight video evokes strong Thor: Ragnarok vibes, which I'm totally on board with for a Spelljammer campaign. The...
D&D Direct Announces Spelljammer Confirmed with Astral Adventurers Guide, Boo’s Astral Menagerie and Light of Xaryxis
https://youtu.be/rPfsTlxJh9o When I saw the D&D Direct press kit for the first time the astounding variety of folders no doubt containing awesome 5E D&D content barely registered because not far from the top of the list Spelljammer snatched my attention right away. Now this is how...
