D&D Ideas — Secret Bases
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is secret bases, 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 secret bases your own friendly local game stores are kinda like a secret base for nerds, right? And you can find Out of the Box in some of them too! 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.
Go Bigger and Badder with More Archdevils and Demon Lords for 5E D&D
I explored some of the baddest baddies from the Nine Hells of Dungeons & Dragons in the past. If you want to check it out you can do so here. Now it’s time to check into a few more of these amazing lords of hell and how you might use these wonderful meanies in your next campaign or session.
Fixing D&D’s Most Boring Spell
When the going gets tough, the tough get FIREBALL! No, seriously. Fireball is one of the most popular and referenced spells in all of Dungeons & Dragons but especially in fifth edition D&D.
Nerdarchy on D&D Monster Battle Royal: Kobolds Vs Goblins
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nVk9_fIm6g In this 10-minute video on Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted take sides and enters the fray in a fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons epic showdown of monsters. This video debate took inspiration from a TikTok video Dave enjoyed. In the discussion they each...
Who — or What — is the Mysterious Accomplice of Dal-dian Abbar?
Our friends from Penny Dragon Games put together a fantastic collection of all things beast inside Bergin’s Book of Beasts. The awesome project brings more than 200 new beasts and beast-flavored subclasses to fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons. The folks from Penny Dragon sent us a little tease from Bergin’s Book of Beasts to share with the Nerdarchy community. We’ve got a cool NPC who’s unique familiar whose signature feature hits with real world relatability.
Sitting on the Dock of the Bay Watching the Monsters Roll Your Way
When I am preparing my session material I like to see what new things I can add to the game. Is there a fun mechanic I would like to explore, an amusing hazard I can add or a location I have not used at all or in a long time that will be engaging for the players?
D&D Ideas — Phobias
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is phobias, 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 phobias more than a few magic items contained within the Mage Forge evoke terror like the Fright Armor and the Book of Dying Light. 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.
Add More Dragons into Your Dungeons with Animon Story
What is Dungeons & Dragons without… well, dungeons? And dragons? While we just got done going through a dungeon crawl with Mork Borg over on Nerdarchy Live, we didn’t see a lot of dragons in the mix. Recently on the Nerdarchy the YouTube channel, Nerdarchists Dave and Ted talked about ideas for dragons in your RPG. There are some wildly good ideas in the discussion. Between the spider and clockwork dragons and the idea for keeping dragons as pets, my brain (of course) darted straight to Animon Story.
Nerdarchy on What is an Adventurer in Dungeons and Dragons
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxEzTJjtN8A In this 22-minute video on Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted dive into the editions of Dungeons & Dragons and dissect the question, "What is an adventurer?" Characters in 5E D&D are much different from AD&D characters. Therefore the reasons they might adventure...
Nerdarchy on TTRPG Discussions: Relationships Level Up Your Games
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YsJYjbvBhtc In this 21-minute video on Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted explore relationships in roleplaying games and how tabletop RPGs can help us get better at relationships. This video came about as a follow up to our Monday Live Chat and accompanying newsletter where...
D&D Ideas — Tropes Revisited
Welcome once again to the weekly newsletter. This week’s topic is tropes revisited, 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 tropes we’re leaning into them hard while developing our very first original roleplaying game — Zoo Mafia! In this game you’ll Go Wild and Do Crime as a resident of a city zoo by day and organized crime syndicate by night. 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.
Capture Those Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Vibes with This FREE Indie RPG
We here at Nerdarchy love tabletop roleplaying games from granddaddy Dungeons & Dragons to underappreciated indie gems like Quest and Animon Story. We love Pathfinder, Cypher System and so many more. Every once in a while we encounter something we just have to talk about. This is the case with Legend of the Forgotten Ballad by cueinn on itch.io.
5E D&D World of Monsters — Beasts
Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted picked up a video series called Nerdarchy’s Guide to D&D Monsters. We launched this series a few years ago with aberrations but one thing led to another and yadda yadda yadda we’re revisiting the topic now. These video guides cover tips for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons players on what to expect and how to manage things when a particular creature type shows up in your campaign setting and adventures. I dig this series personally because a theme like this makes a great jumping off point. Here on the website I take the topic in a different direction and ask what if beasts are the only type of monsters in your 5E D&D world?
Nerdarchy on Be the Most Spell Shrouded 5E Wizard EVER
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K53FaYCv02s In this 14-minute video on Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted explore wizards, spellcasting and magic in fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons. Nerdarchist Ted followed up with a Short with a question for 5E D&D wizards out there too. We're having a lot...
Mutating Into Mythic Ranks of MTG Arena
I’ve stated unequivocally many times how Magic: The Gathering is hands down the best game ever created. I love me some tabletop roleplaying games including a lifelong affection for Dungeons & Dragons but at the end of the day it’s all about that cardboard crack, or digital crack thanks to MTG Arena — the free-to-play digital version of the OG collectible card game. Every so often when I get into a groove (and winning streak) I’ll share the decklist and thoughts here. Rather than updating the first of these posts as I sometimes do when I tweak a deck instead I’m starting from scratch here because this one is significantly different than its original version. Let’s get into it.