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tasha's cauldron of everything optional features

Opting for 5E D&D Character Options from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything

Hey folks! With the release of Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons players and Dungeon Masters alike have been given a number of exciting new character options for Customizing Your Origin and creating a Custom Lineage. Strangely these new options seem to be met with mixed responses but like any optional rules they are merely a source of inspiration and variation to be adopted or not as individual groups of players see fit.

Critical Role RPG campaign

Fluff Like Your 5E D&D Character Backstory is the Game Too

Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted examine how a fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons character’s backstory functions as a tool for the player and Dungeon Master alike. Comments on the video run the range from enthusiasm for this component of 5E D&D character creation to dismissal completely. The modular and adaptable nature of the game itself makes all these perspectives valid but from my perspective backstory is like a lot of other elements of 5E D&D — sitting right there in the open but often glossed over because there’s no pluses and minuses attached. So let’s get into it.

5E D&D lizardfolk

D&D Ideas — Depths

Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is depths, 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 depths in Deep Breaths a group of lizardfolk and their chief ambush heroes deep in the oppressive jungle and demand a price be paid for intrusion. Political and spiritual pressure create a powderkeg of tension among lizardfolk on a pilgrimage along with 54 other dynamic scenarios in Out of the Box. 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.

Incorporating Lore into 5E D&D Experiences Invites Engagement with Worlds Both Real and Imaginary

Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted go to the well to discuss lore in fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons. In general lore is a body of traditions and knowledge on a subject or held by a particular group and typically passed from person to person by word of mouth. This definition applies in our 5E D&D games too and encompasses both the lore presented in the game materials produced by Wizards of the Coast as well as the details specific to your world whether it’s your version of existing settings like Forgotten Realms or something you’ve created wholecloth. So let’s get into it.

Play Your Next 5E D&D Game as an Unkillable Adventurer

Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted dig deep to come up with a fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons character who refuses to stay down. There’s a lot of different features 5E D&D characters can take advantage of to keep death at bay and the video incorporates several into a character build guide for players who never say die. The Unkillable Character Build Guide finds a narrative thread and follows through from 1st to 20th level making it useful for any tier of play. And as always we put together an NPC creature version for Dungeon Masters too. So let’s get into it.

5E D&D circle of wildfire druid tasha's cauldron of everything

Play Your Next 5E D&D Game as a Circle of Wildfire Druid from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything

Lights are everywhere for the holidays! With Hanukkah coming to a close, Yule approaching, Christmas on the way and Kwanzaa candles igniting soon, twinkling candles and blazing hearths warm our hearts in the sparkling winter. There’s no better time to make the holidays merry and bright and talk about the fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons Circle of Wildfire druid from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything.

5 Sources of Motivation for 5E D&D Adventurers

Salutations, nerds! Today I’m sharing five reasons a fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons character might be out adventuring. So often at the table a Dungeon Master asks what the party is doing at the beginning of a session and players pause before admitting they don’t know. This is fine! Sometimes you figure out a 5E D&D character’s motivations as you’re playing. Today I want to go down a list of reasons your character can run with and what kinds of adventurers fall under these umbrellas.

5E D&D lizardfolk

Play Your Next 5E D&D Game as a Lizardfolk with Racial Feats

Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted get continue reimagining various creatures from fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons in exciting new ways and this time they’re looking at another classic from D&D lore — lizardfolk. These reptilian humanoids offer a ton of potential in 5E D&D when you look deeper than the primitive scaly creatures found in the Monster Manual. While they share fresh ideas for incorporating lizardfolk into your 5E D&D games I’m interested in expanding the possibilities for lizardfolk adventurers by creating some racial feats. So let’s get into it.

In RPG Play Everyone’s Responsibility is To Each Other

Salutations, nerds! Today we’re going to talk about sharing responsibility when it comes to tabletop roleplaying games and the ultimate responsibility — to the other people at the table. The important part of a good tabletop RPG is making sure everyone has fun. That’s you and everyone else whether you’re the Game Master or a player. On paper this sounds like a big part of what the GM is there for and in a sense this is correct but the GM has a lot of things they’re already responsible for keeping track of and as a player it’s a good idea to keep tabs on each other’s mental weather.

D&D alliances

D&D Ideas — Name Days

Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is name days, 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 name days if you thought your last holiday get together was awkward you ain’t seen nothing yet because things could get messy in Dinner Party. The truth about your character’s painful, embarrassing or otherwise personal information comes to light for fellow adventurers to learn along with 54 other dynamic scenarios in Out of the Box. 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.

Playing 5E D&D Games RPG tank character

What’s Your Type as an RPG Player?

Every Tuesday evening at Nerdarchy Live the team gathers for a weekly tabletop roleplaying game session at 8 p.m. eastern. While preparing for our next one with Nerdarchist Ted running a dungeon delving reality game show with fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons I realized something about myself — I like playing tank characters. This led to an intriguing discussion tying in nicely to a recent video over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel where Nerdarchists Dave and Ted zoom through a conversation about the fastest 5E D&D character. So let’s get into it.

5E D&D Tasha's Cauldron of Everything human Peace Domain cleric

Power Your Next 5E D&D Game with Friendship as a Peace Domain Cleric from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything

Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything is kind of notorious for adding several aspects to fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons that feel like they always should have always been present in the game. One of these aspects embraces a classic fantasy trope — the power of friendship. The Peace Domain cleric is all about the power of friendship in all the best ways. The Unity Domain from Unearthed Arcana leveled up and evolved into this new Domain. The way mechanics support this subclass give such vital flavor and represent really the best restructuring of Unearthed Arcana content we’ve seen. What’s more this subclass really inspired me with its tone and flavor to the point I feel the best place for this particular subclass is a dark fantasy campaign in the vein of things like The Witcher and Dragon Age.

RPG game master player

Subpar Character Optimization is a Foolish Perspective for 5E D&D

Salutations, nerds! There’s a lot of discourse online about optimization of fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons character creation and what options to take when you level up. And honestly…we’re still talking about this? A lot? In 2020? In 5E D&D? This has to be an exaggeration. Excuse me a minute while I do a quick online search — oh. Oh, I guess we are.

Tasha's Cauldron of Everything 5E D&D

Customize Your 5E D&D Game with Character Options from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything

Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted dive into the front half of Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything. Like Xanathar’s Guide to Everything he latest fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons book splits the difference with about half of the content pertaining primarily to player character material and the other half resources for Dungeon Masters. The modular content in this book is dense! The DM tools drew my attention first but the most recent examination put a notion in my mind and I’m curious to see if the Character Options holds any water in this regard. So let’s get into it.

5E D&D demiplane

D&D Ideas — Nights

Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is nights, 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 nights during Island in the Storm an imprisoned ghost pleads with the heroes to possess one of them in a bid to escape Eternal Night on her island exile. Guide a restless and lonely spirit to release from the painful tethers tying it to the world of the living along with 54 other dynamic scenarios in Out of the Box. 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.