We are bringing this one off the bookshelf after several requests. It was originally posted to r/dnd. If you or your players are interested in scavenging the useful parts of the baddies, then this is the handbook for you. It lists a bounty of usable parts in most of the monsters in the 5e Monster Manual.
Hornbook’s Hammers: A gambling game for your D&D table
Found in both the shadiest taverns and high-end casinos, Hornbook’s Hammers is a table game based on the dice game Sic-bo. It has a dwarven flair and we have had fun playing it during our sessions. The pdf provided has a printable betting board and rules.
Total Party Turns (TPT) and Inspiration in D&D 5e
We need to acknowledge the Tarrasque in the room. Inspiration in 5e Dungeon & Dragons sucks balls. It just does. In most game sessions it goes unused and forgotten about, both by players and DMs. But this Inspiration house rule will change all that. It’s called TPT or Total Party Turn and it’s going to spice up your combat encounters. I promise.
DM Tip: Stop World Building, start World Weaving
DM Tip: Stop World Building, start World Weaving
That’s right, I see you doing it. Just stop before you go blind. World building in D&D is mental masturbation for DMs. I can’t count the number of times, I and other DMs, have slipped into the trap of world building and went blind to our player’s needs. Sure a campaign requires some world structure, but inevitably we, as DMs, go beyond just structure and start piecing together a golem of fiction that we expect everyone to view as beautiful. Spoiler Alert: Most of it is irrelevant and the players don’t care.
Part 4: Variant Training in 5e
Welcome to Part 4 of the WTF do I do with all this Gold series. This time we are looking at Variant Training rules. But first, what is wrong with the current system? Well nothing really, except for it makes little sense and sucks. The way skills, proficiencies, and languages are structured currently prevents character customization and encourages one-level dips to create the character a player wants.
Part 3. Arcane Incense in 5e
Welcome to Part 3 in the WTF do I do With All This Gold in 5e series. This installment will deal with our house rules for using Arcane Incense.
For centuries, incense has been the smoky conduit between humans and the divine or arcane. It has been used to heal, relax, invoke magic, and become closer to the gods. Sounds like pretty awesome stuff. So why has D&D all but ignored such a bountiful source of material? I am here to offer a little fix for that oversight.
Review of Volo’s Guide to Monsters
I was lucky enough to purchase a copy of WOTC’s Volo’s Guide to Monsters today and I figured I would give it a quick review in case you are contemplating purchasing it. I will also provide a little meat for those chomping at the bit to get the book.
Part 2: Ceremonial Advancement
A shortfall of most D&D editions is the economy. That is not an opinion; it is a cold, hard, understandable truth. D&D wasn’t designed to be an economic simulation. It was designed to transport a player to a world of pure fantasy, where mythical creatures and Arcane magic beg to be discovered.
WTF do I do with all this gold in 5e Part 1
“What am I supposed to spend my gold on?” That question has sent many DMs of 5e Dungeons & Dragons scrambling to create land holdings, businesses, strongholds, and other gold sinks as an answer.
Rolling D&D Ability Scores….Do you feel lucky, punk?
There are as many ways to create a character in D&D as there are Tarrasque in a multiverse. The PHB shows us the standards: Point Buy, Standard Array, and 4d6 drop the lowest. All of them have their own benefits. Point Buy is standard in Adventures League and conventions because it is easily verifiable, as is standard array. Rolling the 4d6 harkens back to the days of disco and the straight 3d6. It is fun, but easily abused and fudged. There are even more exotic methods like the Life Path Method, which is extremely fun, but takes a long time. I am here today to introduce you to a new way of rolling stats we have been using here at The Arcana Times it’s called the Gambler’s Gambit.