Prepping without a Plan

Party Composition

Even with a diverse group of characters at the table it can be difficult to have an answer for all the options a game may present. Which member of the party is the front-person making deals and talking the party out of sticky situations?  Is the group in need of someone who can decipher ancient texts or hide in the shadows? Can we really play the game without a healer? Today we discuss party composition and its contribution to your game’s success.  We also discuss how the importance of certain roles can shift the pacing of your campaign.

Player's Handbook Playtest 6

Player’s Handbook Playtest 6 recently released and with its arrival comes a large list of changes for many classes as well as the reintroduction of the monk with its more inclusive updates. Additionally, Wizards of the Coast has made it clear that this latest playtest moves us more into the refinement phases of One D&D from the more experimental phases in previous playtests.   Does this mean they have found the core framework of the game they are happy with?  Today, Jeremy and Hollis discuss many of these changes and give input on the playtest materials!

Prepping without a Plan

A good tip for both life and for running your game is to “expect the unexpected”.  So what happens if in spite of your best efforts, it's the day you and your players are meeting up to play, but you’ve got nothing prepared?  Don’t panic!  This happens! And we are confident it has nothing to do with laziness. *wink* Today, we discuss prepping without a plan and give you some of the tools already present in your game to keep the story moving forward. You’d be surprised about the amazing choices you can present players and the direction the game can go the more you improvise.  This was a fun topic to discuss and we hope you have fun listening!

Meta

The separation of player knowledge from character knowledge is something that trips up many new player of Tabletop RPGs.  Whether it's because we want our characters to be able to act on new information OR because we want to streamline parts of the game, each table of players has a different tolerance for "metagaming".  Is metagaming always a faux pas to avoid or is it possible that it could be doing some good? Listen in as Jeremy and Hollis discuss metagaming, meta tools, and how to handle all things meta at your table!

D&D Magic

Magic is a core element of Dungeons and Dragons that has changed a fair bit through each iteration. Whether its the swapping of a school of spells or the introduction of the Vancian magic system, magic has been one of the most fun ways characters are able to do some truly amazing things at their table. Today, Jeremy and I have a chat about Magic in Dungeons and Dragons.  A listener recommended this topic and we were so happy to have the discussion and give our general thoughts about Magic as a whole in D&D.  We hope you enjoy the episode!