Jan 28, 20193 min readIn Defense of Challenge RatingsI'm always surprised when I see people online complaining about Challenge Rating in Dungeons & Dragons. A deep roster of interesting...
Jan 21, 20192 min readSimple Mass Combat Rules For D&DWizards of the Coast has some great in-depth rules for mass combat via their quasi-official Unearthed Arcana section. But for a recent...
Dec 26, 20184 min readCreating Combats With ChoicesYou've seen one group of goblins in a 20x20 room, you've seem 'em all. Combat is as integral to Dungeons & Dragons as its fantasy...
Dec 19, 20184 min readTo Roll, Or Not To RollIf there was a game master personality test— something like Myers-Briggs, Type A/B, or even the Hogwarts sorting hat— one of the core...
Dec 17, 20185 min readBuilding a Campaign: Goals and ObstaclesHow do you run a story-based Dungeons & Dragons campaign without strapping players to the railroad tracks? My technique is to help the...
Dec 12, 20185 min readSimplifying The StartFifth edition is probably the easiest iteration of Dungeons & Dragons for beginners. This is not only due to making it an intentional...
Dec 3, 20184 min readWhy The Medieval Setting WorksIn my review of sci-fi game Stars Without Number last week, I didn’t mention one rule I really like. Most melee weapons in the game have...
Nov 26, 20184 min readAct Structure In Dungeons & DragonsRecently I've been very interested in learning about formal story structure. I find it fascinating, but do game masters have the luxury...
Nov 19, 20184 min readExperience Points Versus MilestonesA common discussion in the Dungeons & Dragons community concerns the traditional experience point system versus milestone/session-based...
Nov 12, 20185 min readThe Challenge of Skill ChallengesJune 2008. Wizards of the Coast releases the fourth edition of Dungeons & Dragons. They must realize that there will be some backlash to...
Nov 5, 20184 min readHow To Play D&D For The First TimeWhere to start with Dungeons & Dragons? As I mentioned in a previous post, I love playing Dungeons & Dragons, as well as other tabletop...
Oct 29, 20184 min readKeep Them Moving As a game master, you’re doing a good job as long as everyone at your table is engaged and interested in the game. I’m probably not the...
Oct 24, 20184 min readExample SessionHere's an actual example of how I utilized the ideas I went over in Monday's post to design an adventure. I'll also go over how it...
Oct 22, 20184 min readHow I Design D&D SessionsThe 5th edition Dungeon Master’s Guide dedicates an entire chapter to building an adventure out of encounters, but it has very little in...
Oct 15, 20184 min readWhy I Play Tabletop Role-Playing GamesThat’s a clunky phrase, isn’t it? “Tabletop role-playing games.” Even abbreviated, TTRPG is just a mess. Many people are familiar with...
