Adding mechanical benefits to critical saving throws so players don't feel like their 20 is wasted.
Critical Saving Throws
Tag: Dungeon Master
Expertise Skill Hack
5th Edition D&D has a skill problem. It lies in a feature called expertise, which allows you to add your proficiency bonus twice when using a skill. Let's see what problems this causes and I'll give you a simple hack to fix them!
That Broken GWM/SS “Fix”
The most notorious feats in 5th Edition D&D are Sharpshooter (SS) and Great Weapon Master (GWM). These feats are considered the most powerful because of a mechanic they share in common. Yet, a common "fix" to nerf them does not have the intended result! Let's run the numbers.
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.
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.
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?
Narrating Missed Attacks
We often say an attack that misses by 2 hits your shield. Yet, a shield isn't your last line of defense--it's one of your first! Can we establish an order of operations for missed attacks that assists us in narrating combat more accurately?
Simple Trap System
Traps can be fun. A great myth is that traps need to be carefully curated to be worth anything. While curated traps are wonderful, even simple traps can be great. Here's a simple system for running fun and impactful traps at your table: Download the PDF via DM's Guild Elements of a Good Trap For … Continue reading Simple Trap System
Breath Weapon Dice Pools
Torching the whole party with a dragon's breath weapon is one of the most fun moments as a Dungeon Master. How can we tweak this rule to have greater control over its power and establish ludonarrative harmony?
