D&D Ideas — Acid
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is acid, 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 acid in Balance an innocent sprite’s existence literally hangs in the balance from a sadistic trap. You can get the Nerdarchy 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.
Embracing the Core Principle of Quest RPG Makes a Guide’s Life Fun, Rewarding and Easy
Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted share their experience and a general overview of playing Quest RPG. I fell in love with this whimsical RPG a while back and when my turn in the hot seat came around on our Tuesday night games at Nerdarchy Live I couldn’t wait to Guide the group through creating a story with Quest RPG. In the video the guys discuss their impression of the game from the player side of things and mention their curiosity about the nuance of being the Guide — Quest’s iteration of a Game Master. I’m the Guide for the group in which they play and as a follow up to the initial thoughts I shared after first discovering this wonderful RPG I aim to do so right now. Let’s get into it.
Worldbuilding and Character Development for 5E D&D Inspired by Game of Thrones — Hide Armor
I finished rewatching Game of Thrones all the way through for a second time recently and the series engaged me in different ways this time around. For one thing it’s fun knowing the fate of characters and seeing how each step on their journey influences their outcomes and for another and I simply missed a lot of the nuance the first time around. As for so many fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons nerds the show appeals to me as a source of gaming inspiration too. One particular standout from the show is the armor worn by warriors across Westeros and Essos. A wealth of worldbuilding and character development potential for 5E D&D awaits through armor and I’m excited to explore them. Let’s get into it.
D&D Ideas — Thunder & Lightning
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is thunder & lightning, 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 thunder & lightning these foreboding phenomenon may signal a successfully solved puzzle or herald something ominous for adventurers. Why not both? You can get the Nerdarchy 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.
Balancing Monster Descriptions with World Knowledge in 5E D&D
There is a strange tradition in Dungeons & Dragons of withholding monster identities from players and their characters. This often takes the form of a somewhat tedious cat and mouse game of selective description that seems to serve no other purpose than to gaslight the players. While I recognize this is generally intended to instill a sense of in-world wonder and mystery I also have to wonder if it is really all that necessary or even realistic.
D&D Ideas — Cold
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is cold, 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 cold in Gang of One a highly intelligent chimera uses the cold environment, deception and flight to assail heroes with all its cunning along with 54 other dynamic scenarios in Out of the Box. You can get the Nerdarchy 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.
Enduring the Elements of Weather Adds to Immersion in Your RPG Experiences
Get your ponchos and snow boots ready because we are about to get wet as we brace for all sorts of inclement weather. The one aspect of roleplaying games that always keeps me coming back for more is the opportunity for creativity. The opportunity to create worlds, characters and entire universes is really awesome. With these opportunities the weather is a factor I personally do not see frequently in games. Attention Game Masters — this is the perfect way to lead to a TPK. Just kidding about that, but adding weather elements is a way to spice up your game. Match the weather to the environment and see what happens. Descriptive weather can add to the story and immersion of your game without any additional mechanics added.
Multiclassing Should Always be Allowed in a 5E D&D
Multiclassing in fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons always seems to polarize a Dungeon Master when it comes up. I’ll admit I’m no exception to this rule. In fact I’m so much in favor of multiclassing in 5E D&D I sometimes ask my players why they aren’t multiclassing. They say the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence but for my part, my grass is looking pretty darn green. Regardless of what side of the multiclassing fence you find yourself on I’m going to try to convince you my grass is clearly the greenest.
Worldbuilding and Character Development for 5E D&D Inspired by Game of Thrones — Studded Leather Armor
I recently finished rewatching Game of Thrones all the way through for a second time and the series engaged me in different ways this time around. It’s fun knowing the fate of characters and seeing how each step of their journey influences their outcomes for one thing and I simply missed a lot of the nuance the first time around for another. Like for so many fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons nerds the show appeals to me as a source of gaming inspiration too. One particular standout from the show is the armor worn by warriors across Westeros and Essos. A wealth of worldbuilding and character development potential for 5E D&D awaits through armor and I’m excited to explore them. Let’s get into it.
D&D Ideas — Fire
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is fire, 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 fire in Fire for Effect two monsters, tactically minded and ruthless in combat, work together to create a dangerous fighting force made even more perilous in a confined setting where collateral damage is a very real concern. You can get the Nerdarchy 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.
Worldbuilding and Character Development for 5E D&D Inspired by Game of Thrones — Leather Armor
I’m rewatching Game of Thrones all the way through for a second time and the series engages me in different ways this time around. It’s fun knowing the fate of characters and seeing how each step of their journey influences their outcomes for one thing and I simply missed a lot of the nuance the first time around for another. Like for so many fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons nerds the show appeals to me as a source of gaming inspiration too. One particular standout from the show is the armor worn by warriors across Westeros and Essos. A wealth of worldbuilding and character development potential for 5E D&D awaits through armor and I’m excited to explore them. Let’s get into it.
D&D Ideas — Scrolls
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is scrolls, 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. One of the many places we create content for you to drop right into your games is Nerdarchy the Website where you’ll find stuff like the Tome of Holding, a very rare magic item any wizard would treasure. Check it out and stash it in your next treasure hoard here. You can get the Nerdarchy 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.
Worldbuilding and Character Development for 5E D&D Inspired by Game of Thrones — Padded Armor
I recently started rewatching Game of Thrones all the way through for a second time. I’d bounced off the series twice and gotten hooked on my third attempt watching the series. Watching it again now engages me in different ways. For one thing it’s fun knowing the fate of the characters and seeing how each step of their journey influences their outcomes. For another I simply missed a lot of the nuance the first time around. Like countless fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons nerds the show appeals to me as a source of inspiration for gaming too. One thing about the show that stands out particularly to me is the armor worn by warriors across Westeros and Essos. There’s a wealth of worldbuilding and character development potential for 5E D&D through armor and I’m excited to explore them so let’s get into it.
D&D Ideas — Wondrous Items
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is wondrous items, 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. The Clockwork Frog is one of our own most wondrous items, which functions as a vehicle for up to two creatures. Originally created for our Muckwuggle the Frog God book this wondrous item more recently became one of our monthly Magic Item Cards. Find out more about it here. You can get the Nerdarchy 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.
Curses Come With Dramatic Significance in 5E D&D with Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft
We’ve been delving deep into Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft since this fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons book released and at this point not only read it cover to cover but spent a great deal of time thinking about the content to share useful insights on all the material inside. The book devotes significant space to guidance for running horror adventures for 5E D&D and does a terrific job doing so for Dungeon Masters and the rest of the players in any given game. One of those areas of guidance deals with curses so let’s get into it.
