Episode 43 of Nerdarchy the Podcast Year One Here is another one of our early Dungeons and Dragons Monster vids. Minotaur has been a favorite monster for our group from the beginning. My love for this monster has roots in Dragonlance. I’ve been hooked since I was first introduced to the character Kaz and Huma. […]
E37 YR 1- Nerdarchy Presents Terrible Terrain at Brigade Con an Online RPG Convention Podcast
Episode 37 of Nerdarchy the Podcast Year One. This is our very first ever live stream with a questions and answers format. At this point we had streamed games using Google Hangouts. Most of which were Dungeons and Dragons, but we hadn’t ever did one of our talk about live videos at this point. Funny […]
RPG Designing with Purpose
In my previous article, I talked about the pitfalls we fall into when creating character concepts, or more specifically how we overcomplicate the process. That got me to thinking about another side of it. Why are we adding to the game? What’s our endgame? Are we adding to the story, or introducing a mechanic? Or, are […]
E27 YR1- How to Start a Dungeons and Dragons Campaign or Any Role Playing Game For That Matter Podcast
Episode 27 Nerdarchy the Podcast Year One. The council of game masters meet once again to discuss game mastering. Or at least most of the GM council is assembled anyway. How to Start a Dungeons and Dragons Campaign or Any Role Playing Game For That Matter How to Start a Dungeons and Dragons Campaign or […]
E25 YR1- DnD 5th Edition Gameplay Wrap| Our Thoughts After The 2nd 5E D&D Session Podcast
Episode 25 Nerdarchy the Podcast- We are doing one of the few gameplay wraps that we’ve done over the years. Not only did we have one guest for game, but two guests. Mark and Scott sit in as we digest the aftermath of our first character death in 5E D&D. DnD 5th Edition Gameplay Wrap| […]
E14- YR 1 Freak Vs. Geek (Beholder Vs Lich)| Dungeons and Dragons Monsters Podcast
Episode 14 brings us to a fun little experiment where we pit Dungeons and Dragons monsters against each other. In this case we have a beholder square off against a lich in Screw Attack Death Battle sort of scenario. Monster Vs. Monster with the Freak Vs. the Geek (Beholder Vs Lich)| Dungeons and Dragons Monsters […]
E9- Yr 1 The Basics Of Building And Running Interesting Encounters Game Master Tips Podcast
Year 1 of Nerdarchy the podcast continues with episode number 9. This time we go through encounter design for fantasy style RPGs like Pathfinder and Dungeons and Dragons. We are about half way through Year 1 at this point perhaps a little less. Our YouTube content wasn’t as prolific as it is today. The Basics […]
The art of gaming without gaming! Trials and triumphs of a full-time nerd in a part-time world
There is no disputing that tabletop role-playing games, and Dungeons & Dragons in particular, are more popular than ever before. While still a niche hobby, that niche has grown considerably large, and the perception of it has shifted as well. The moment when I realized how great a step forward the role-playing game hobby has […]
New DM Handbook: Pirate’s Cove (My Tutorial Quest)
A couple of months ago, I laid out an article about the usefulness of a tutorial quest for new players. I’ve since referenced it a number of times in other articles, but I haven’t talked about the results, which I promised to do after finishing the quest with my party. A promise that I haven’t […]
Tabletop RPG Combat Isn’t Always About Trading Blows
For those of us Dungeon Masters who care more about the narrative than the combat parts of the game, trading blows can be a total drag. But I’m about to tell you, the narrative doesn’t have to stop just because combat started. There is no doubt that a huge part of Dungeons & Dragons is […]
New DM Handbook: Starting Your Adventure
As of this writing, about 10 days ago The DMG Info shared a video with Nerdarchy about starting your adventure, and how you’re doing it wrong. A week later, Nerdarchists Dave and Ted posted a response video. Today, in a bout of Nerdception, I want to give my thoughts about the subject as a whole, […]
Split the party! Trials and triumphs of a full-time nerd in a part-time world
Without a GM to run the tabletop RPG, whether it’s Dungeons & Dragons or whatever game your group is playing, the party’s continuing adventures will be put on hold. But what if one or more of the players can’t make it to your next session? Or perhaps your group attendance changes all the time, with […]
“Three Eyes Are Better” – Out of the Box D&D Encounters #40
In conjunction with previous encounters, this will also expand on the concept of making D&D monster encounters less “vanilla.” As seen in “Phoeba’s Bet,” this will be another foray into granting class levels to a normally predictable monster. The monster in question this time is the (lowly) Cyclops. The Cyclops has classically been seen as […]
Let players steer the ship! Trials and triumphs of a full-time nerd in a part-time world
In the previous installment, I advised GMs to throw players directly into action to start off a new campaign. This is especially useful for groups without regular gaming sessions and/or groups that include new or lapsed gamers. Your goal is to hook the players by immersing them in the world and instilling the sense that […]
DMing a Killer Romance Arc in D&D
Bringing romance to D&D Embed from Getty Images Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and with all this pink and red plastered everywhere, and all of these teddy bears crowding the shelves at every store, it’s no wonder I’ve got romance on the brain. It’s enough to make a person want to barf. But […]