Thrust Player Agency Upon TTRPG Players with Questions to Engage
Whether I’m acting as Game Master or not the thing I dislike the most about any tabletop roleplaying game experience is a group who interacts in isolation from each other. As a player I want to interact with the other players through our characters and as a GM I hope to see this behavior from the people in the group. There’s several reasons for this and a technique I began using a few years ago helps tremendously. So let’s get into it.
Cawood Publishing Challenges Adventurers with Monsters of the Wilderness
Our friends at Cawood Publishing unveiled a new excursion into the World of Myrr unfolding through their series of monster books. Monsters of the Wilderness for 5th Edition is the fourth book in the series and the Kickstarter campaign bringing it to life for gaming groups all over the world launched today and runs through March 4.
The Five Room Backstory for 5E D&D Characters
Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted look at ways for a Dungeon Master to use a character backstory as a resource to create dungeons for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons. Building on their ideas I’m curious about approaching from the opposite end and exploring how players can set their DMs up for success by constructing their character backstory like a dungeon for 5E D&D. So let’s get into it.
Start Your 5E D&D Campaign with a Single Encounter
How long is a typical session of fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons? When I was much younger with many fewer responsibilities my friends and I gathered to play D&D for a lot longer than the game sessions I experience these days. Scheduling and time management are factors in this as well as the influence of online gaming both streamed or simply using communication software to connect with fellow players. Newer Dungeon Masters and those curious about what life is like on the other side of the DM screen already have lots to consider (and feel anxious about) and session length is rarely something I see discussed when it comes to 5E D&D or any other tabletop roleplaying game for that matter. So let’s get into it.
Does the Power of 5E D&D Characters Eclipse the Game’s Original Intent?
Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted take a look at a social media thread about the fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons experience from a “self-parody account” that tagged Nerdarchy. The thread presents a fun topic for consideration and discussion. Do the onramps to great power for 5E D&D characters reflect a community and rule set much different than the creators of the game’s original vision? It’s a deeply abstract notion to explore. So let’s get into it (a little bit anyway — I’m not writing a master’s thesis here).
Taking Inspiration from the Language of Flowers for Your RPG Campaign World
Salutations, nerds! Today I’m writing about flowers in tabletop roleplaying games. Specifically I’m thinking about how back in the Victorian era people were way extra and liked to make codes out of everything. How ladies held their fans was a language in and of itself to the point the hand they carried it in could indicate whether or not they were available for someone else to pursue. In a culture that really didn’t like saying things outright there was a lot of reading between the lines — a lot of implication. Floriography, or the language of flowers, says this poignantly. If you’ve ever wanted to passive aggressively flip someone the bird this was a really excellent way to do so.
Adventurer as a Culture in Tabletop Roleplaying Games
Salutations, nerds! Today we’re gonna rhapsodize a little bit about adventurers as a culture in fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons and other tabletop roleplaying games. A little definition delve first off. Any time more than one person participates in and shares something they are participating in a culture. It could be a super small one. Your local comic book store where you go to play Magic: the Gathering has a culture made up of the references and inside jokes that have come up there and that is a culture you participate in.
Support and Manage Your Quest with Quest Companion Digital Tools
The new year barely got started and my tabletop roleplaying game expectations already begin to come true! Over at Reddit recently I came across a fantastic resource for Quest, an RPG currently in my No. 1 favorite game position. Quest Companion is “your digital best friend for managing your Quest tabletop role-playing games.” In a short time I’ve already seen Quest Companion grow and evolve. Just today I took a look and see there’s several new components moving this resource swiftly towards the perfect fulfillment of my RPG needs. So let’s get into it.
Shining a Light on Darklands Rising Miniatures from WizKids
A new set of prepainted miniatures from our lovely friends over at WizKids is set for Feb. 3 release. Pathfinder Battles: Darklands Rising has some amazing miniatures I am excited to add to my roleplaying miniatures collection as well as for use in my personal Dungeons & Dragons games. Darklands Rising fantasy miniatures are designed for the Pathfinder roleplaying game and features creatures from the deepest depths of Golarion but certainly make a terrific addition to your minis and battle grids for any fantasy tabletop RPG.
Take Shelter from the Frostmaiden Inside Wizkids 5E D&D Icewind Dale Papercraft Sets
As the world of terrain for tabletop roleplaying gaming continues to improve it is cool to see all the directions it is going. I remember doing punch out kits, usually in a woodlike material back in the day. Now the wonderful people over at WizKids have taken this concept and made houses perfect for gaming terrain. D&D Icons of The Realms Miniatures: Icewind Dale: Rime of The Frostmaiden – The Lodge and Ten Towns Papercraft Sets became part of my collection and I’m excited to craft these super sturdy cardboard buildings to use in my fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons games.
Big RPG Plans for WizKids Unpainted Miniatures Wave 13
WizKids has been putting out quality miniatures for quite some time. I can recall their releases during the third edition Dungeons & Dragons era and how they changed what we were doing at the gaming table. For many years I’ve purchased their prepainted miniatures line and loved them. They are great for any who have no desire or inclination to paint miniatures for their tabletop roleplaying game experiences.
Improve Your RPG Experiences with Random Generators
The other day I was playing Dungeons & Dragons and the Dungeon Master started describing an NPC casting a spell. Rather than say the NPC begins an incantation he instead began performing an evocative chant that really brought me into the scene and the game. Needless to say I was very impressed. Not only had I thought this DM had seriously prepped the encounter but I thought we had overstepped what we should have been doing at the time.
Diving into the Evolution of Tabletop RPGs
I couldn’t be more excited going into our new Dungeons & Delving campaign at Nerdarchy Live. The premise is a dungeon delving reality game show where our characters are treasure hunters. This fascinating premise comes from the mind of our own Nerdarchist Ted. The hype is real and it’s gotten me thinking about the premise itself and why we’re seeing an influx of nontraditional content in the streamed gaming community for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons.
3 Ways to Handle NPC Conversation Without Breaking the Flow of Your RPG
Salutations, nerds! Every once in a while the NPCs in a tabletop roleplaying game talk to each other and this has a tendency to become super awkward for a Game Master. Few GMs enjoy the feeling of narrating back and forth with themselves while a group of players wait on hold. Today I’m going to be sharing three ways to handle this circumstance during an RPG session.
Worldbuilding Through Perspectives on 5E D&D Adventurers
Salutations, nerds! How do the layfolk in fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons settings react to adventurers coming to town? I’ve played in a lot of settings handling these circumstances in a lot of different ways and today I want to pick this apart a little bit because there are basically three schools of thought on the matter. Imagine you’re living a basic life in your home town and Superman comes to town. This is the frame of mind I want you in for this 5E D&D discussion..
