Push Your 5E D&D Skills to the Limit with Puzzles from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything
Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted ruminate on all the myriad ways for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons players to increase their characters’ chances to succeed on one of the three main kinds of d20 rolls forming the core of the rules of the game. In addition to attack rolls and saving throws the other kind of roll players make are ability checks and sometimes these are further modified with a proficiency bonus to reflect a character’s particular skill. There’s a lot wrapped up in these circumstances. Not long ago I looked at when, how and what particular skills get checked during a 5E D&D game. Today I’m excited about all the ways to challenge these skills through a variety of puzzles found in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything. So let’s get into it.
Doing Your Part as an RPG Player to Create Cinematic Combat Encounters
Salutations, nerds! Today we’re looking at combat in a tabletop roleplaying game and how you as a player contribute to describing them and fostering a more cinematic experience. I can imagine some of you reading this tentatively thinking, “But isn’t this the Game Master’s job?” And actually you’re right — to an extent. Players possess some degree of agency when it comes to how their RPG characters fight is perceived. Now the discussion becomes how to get those cool moves across without being an attention hog.
Play Your Next 5E D&D Game as a Phantom Rogue from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything
Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything contains a variety of new material for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons not the least of which includes subclasses for each 5E D&D class. One of my personal favorites is the Phantom, a Roguish Archetype to allow communication with the spirits of the dead in order to enhance the rogue’s capabilities.
Master New 5E D&D Feats from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything
Some of the earliest marketing for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons back when it was still the D&D Next playtest phase touted the modular nature of the upcoming new (and still current) iteration of the game. I’ve always felt this was a fantastic way to frame 5E D&D. As the edition matured over the last few years it’s been terrific to watch this approach blossom through each new book release. Now with Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything one of the Ur modules of 5E D&D gets a major boost with the addition of 15 new feats taking character customization to a whole new dimension. So let’s get into it.
Master New 5E D&D Maneuvers from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything
Fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons characters with a warrior vibe of any stripe can discover a lot to love inside Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything. All the new subclasses available for 5E D&D players create amazing new opportunities for some really fantastic characters. Not to be outdone by all the magical possibilities a more grounded approach to interaction with 5E D&D experienced a groundswell of cool new options not the least of which are seven new maneuvers adding variety to a warrior’s repertoire. So let’s get into it.
Master New 5E D&D Fighting Styles from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything
Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted toss around ideas about a particular kind of fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons character. Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything introduces tons of fantastic new character options including a few perfect for realizing a character capable of slinging projectiles to deadly effect as a Thrown Weapon Fighting master along with some other really awesome new 5E D&D Fighting Styles. So let’s get into it.
D&D Ideas — Knights
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is knights, 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 knights in Feeling Buggy if adventurers help a beleaguered bug person defeat a frightening figment of the imagination the grateful insectoid pledges themselves as a knight in service to the mighty heroes. Battle and best a fearsome imaginary beast to win the loyalty of an insectoid knight 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.
Play Your Next 5E D&D Game as a Deadly Spell Assassin
Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted get inspired by a comment made during Live Chat Revivified and set out to explore the concept of a magical assassin for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons. When it came up how an Assassin rogue’s signature Assassinate feature indicates advantage on any attack rolls — not just weapon attacks — the gears began turning. A dash of this, a dip of that and out comes an unusual but very effective 5E D&D character. So let’s get into it.
Play Your Next 5E D&D Game as a Superhero Psi Warrior Fighter from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything
For everyone who’s ever wanted to play a superhero in fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons now you can thanks to Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything. (Maybe not literally any superhero.) I’m a firm believer in the sorcerer as the premier superhero archetype maker. If we’re talking flavor for a fantasy world superhero, the Psi Warrior Martial Archetype for the fighter is second to none.
Behind Every Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything Sidekicks Stands a Great Adventurer
Adventurers in fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons games I’ve run are no strangers to sidekicks whether they’re hired help, apprentices, spelljamming vessel crew or something else. I dug sidekicks when they were introduced through Unearthed Arcana, made their official debut in Dragon of Icespire Peak and most certainly in their expansion found in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything. The sidekicks material in the book provides wonderful guidelines for incorporating these helpful creatures into your 5E D&D games. So let’s get into it.
D&D Party Composition — Playing an All Ranger Party
Over on the Nerdarchy YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted take to the wilds for an exploration of the idea of an all ranger party for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons. Here on the website we take a different approach to this popular video series and continue my take on the concept of single party composition. Rangers in 5E D&D blend combat focused Ranger Archetype features with wilderness survival from the base class. But we’re focusing on a different kind of class here in our D&D academia campaign setting, the conceptual frame for this series. Courses at Ranger Conclaves offer correspondence learning for burgeoning rangers to provide practical instruction in the field. So let’s get into it.
Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything Aberrant Mind Sorcerer is Psion Successor
Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything introducing psionics changes the landscape of fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons. Several subclasses included in the book represent spiritual successors to classes of a time gone by — the dreaded fourth edition D&D [insert dramatic music here]. In this totally not controversial and completely unbiased article I’d like to discuss why the Aberrant Mind sorcerer is the best fit as spiritual successor of the psion. I made a video on my YouTube channel giving an overview of the subclasses presented in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything and I promised in depth posts on each of them. This is but one of those.
D&D Ideas — Ruins
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is ruins, 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 ruins in Gone But Not Forgotten cursed plant life guards the ruins of a burial mound and awards resourceful heroes with a long abandoned tomb’s plunder. Even when others forget, the dead remember in this mysterious encounter 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, by signing up here.
Cyborgs and Robots Take Over 5E D&D through Clockwork Soul Sorcerer
I want to talk about cyborgs, robots and machines in fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons (oh my)! The new Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything has everything! Well, it has a lot. Reading through the new 5E D&D subclasses I had some initial thoughts I shared on my YouTube channel and I promised to talk more about them.
Anyone Can Be Psionic with New 5E D&D Feats in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything
Psionics have finally made their canonical fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons debut in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything. And when I say now anyone can be psionic I mean anyone. Courtesy of two new 5E D&D psionic feats any character or creature can manifest at least a base level of psionic power!
