A dojo for players of fantasy role-playing games
This is a continuation of a series that seeks to re-imagine the standard races of Dungeons & Dragons as more unique and fully developed cultures. The last article dealt with the Einolar, a Wood...
First of all, to anyone reading this, welcome back, and my sincere apologies for being gone for so long. I’m incredibly grateful to see that people are still coming to our site and even...
We’ve been running a weekly collaborative D&D campaign since January using the Roll 20 system, and it’s been a great experience. The game is set in Oldstone, a crossroads city in a desert region...
Last year, I was recruited to be part of a creative team for a new D&D setting published by Fainting Goat Games and led by Jason Tondro. Although gamers with broad experience may recognize both Fainting...
I’ve been ruminating recently on an issue I haven’t seen a lot of discussion about: How many players are too few or too many? For most groups, this issue is more a matter of...
This article is a sequel to Wallace Cleaves’ discussion of medieval warfare, in which the medievalist applies a scholar’s understanding of period warfare to his own fantasy world setting, the Vault. Warfare in the Vault...
Although many fantasy games contain military elements, large-scale campaigns, wars, and sieges, few games seem to reflect how medieval armies really operated. When a military unit appears in a game, its structure is often simply a...
At present the enemy shoot and sling beyond our range, so that our Cretan archers are no match for them; our hand-throwers cannot reach as far; and when we pursue, it is not possible...
The file embedded below was originally created as a guide for members of our Facebook Group, Dungeons & Dragons Round Table. As such, all of its links — I’m afraid — route through Facebook....
Which ability scores are the most popular? Which are most likely to be dump stats? You probably have some gut answers about this, based on what you’ve seen first-hand. I know I did. But,...
Introduction Lord Blot is a sentient sphere of annihilation. It maintains a low profile in a remote area of a larger kingdom, where it enjoys both limited anonymity and territorial independence. Local rulers know it...
Shapeshifters is a new series on nonplayer characters. These NPCs aren’t literal shapeshifters. Instead, they fall into the “shapeshifter” archetype described by scholars of myth like Joseph Campbell. We’re talking about the Professor Snapes and Walder...
The party has arrived at a massive stone arch, through which only darkness can be viewed. A single fire rune appears on the keystone of the arch. Hemlock (Rogue): Before we step through the...
Game-Mastering Advice / Settings / The World of the Vault / World Building
November 10, 2019
City Adventuring / Game-Mastering Advice / Get Medieval
Get Medieval: The Village in the Middle Ages
October 28, 2014
City Adventuring / Settings / World Building
Introducing the Ludus Population Engine
October 21, 2014
Welcome to The Ludus, the School of Games We’re writing The Ludus for players and game-masters of tabletop fantasy role-playing… Read more…
