Shield Master Unleashed

Can we rewrite the Shield Master feat to fix its fiddly action economy?

Warlock Eldritch Invocations Table

Introducing the Warlock Eldritch Invocations Table including effect summaries, prerequisites, action economy, recharge, and source info.

Pole Position: PAM over GWM

Why to take the Polearm Master feat before the Great Weapon Master feat.

Schrödinger’s Orcs

This is my dirtiest DM secret: I don't fudge dice. I fudge entire monsters. This DMing tip can help you manage the tide of combat to dramatic conclusions.

Artificer Teardown

It happened. On February 28, 2019, The Artificer Revisited was released to much fanfare. What did we get? Let's chew up the crunch. We'll start with the base class mechanics and move into the subclasses next week, when we build a template for how to homebrew an Artificer subclass. Base Class Hit Die (d8). A … Continue reading Artificer Teardown →

How To Run A Sandbox

How do you run a sandbox without being completely overwhelmed by the expansiveness? Let's tackle this by dividing it into two sections: planning the sandbox and running the sandbox.

The Fletcher (Ranger)

I love the concept of a Ranger that's just out in the wilderness, living off the land. This survivalism should be reflected in the Ranger's craftsmanship. Since most Rangers are ranged attackers, it makes sense that they should be able to craft their own projectiles. Even special projectiles that will help them in the variety of situations they may encounter in the wilderness. Meet the Fletcher!

Kitbashing the Warlord

Among new class options, the Warlord is highly coveted. Especially so among 4th Edition (4e) veterans. In fact, the Warlord is probably the most popular class concept that hasn’t been graced with a playtest treatment via Unearthed Arcana. With no expectations as to when we might see an official Warlord (sub)class, how close can we get with the current options in 5th Edition (5e)?

Martial Adept vs. Magic Initiate

We're comparing the Martial Adept feat and the Magic Initiate feat. While the effect of linear fighters vs. quadratic wizards most often manifests in class design (mostly due to spell access), there’s an interesting reflection of this design in the 5e feats, which we expect to be balanced against each other.

Lucky Feat: RAW vs. RAI

After last's week post calculating the success odds for the Lucky feat, some folks who run the Lucky feat a little differently asked me to run the odds on that iteration. Since this homerule is popularly employed, including by D&D Lead Rules Designer Jeremy Crawford, we're running the odds and evaluating the comparison.