AoE Spells vs. Hordes

Casting big area effect damage spells is great fun. Taking forever to resolve them is not. Let's reverse engineer the saving throw math so we can get to the narrative resolution quicker.

The Hotel California Rule

The Eagles masterfully set the scene in the first few lines of Hotel California. Learn how we can employ that lesson as Dungeon Masters.

Starting Gold Dice

Recalculating starting gold dice based on the standard equipment options for each class.

How Does Shapechanger Work?

Today we're exploring a rules clarification with the new Eberron Changeling. The Changeling gets a racial feature called "Shapechange" which allows it to change form. Here's the relevant part we'll be examining: The language of the feature says that you can change your appearance as an action. It also says you stay in this form … Continue reading How Does Shapechanger Work? →

Casting a Bonus Action and Reaction Spell on Your Turn

The bonus action spellcasting restriction in 5th Edition D&D can keep you from casting a reaction spell on your own turn. Why is this? Was it intended? And how can we rewrite the rule to alleviate this quirk?

Movement Effect Size Caps

Should effects which manipulate the movement of a target be limited by size? We examine the narrative issues and give you a simple rule that fixes them by employing size caps.

Thrown Weapon Master

Today we're building a feat to alleviate action economy woes with thrown weapons and give them a nice damage boost to bring it in line with other weapon loadouts.

Exploration Dice

5th Edition D&D players often lament the exploration pillar as the most underdeveloped tier of play, behind the combat and social pillars. While there are great tools for fleshing out your world in the core materials, they lack mechanical bite. We're here to give those narrative elements some mechanical teeth with Exploration Dice.

Bag of Holding Fish Tank

How long can a sahuagin live in a water-filled Bag of Holding?

Egg Moves

I often draw tabletop RPG inspiration from playing totally unrelated games. In the Pokemon game series, you can breed your Pokemon together for a variety of reasons, including learning new moves. How can we adapt this concept to make more creative monsters?