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# Shadomain - All About Games

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## Posts

- [The Cookie Brigade: How Cookies Became a PAX Community Staple](https://shadomain.com/the-cookie-brigade-how-cookies-became-a-pax-community-staple/) - If you’ve ever been to PAX, there are a few things you probably expect: long lines, cool games, expensive food… and if you’ve been going long enough, cookies. Free cookies. If that sounds too good to be true, you’ve probably already met the Cookie Brigade. I recently got the chance to talk with Hayden Kane
- [The Beauty of Baseball, RPGs and Creativity](https://shadomain.com/the-beauty-of-baseball-rpgs-and-creativity/) - By Jason Campbell “Put me in coach, I’m ready to play - today.” John Fogerty Thursday is opening day 2026 for major league baseball. Many readers may not be sports fans, or perhaps don’t follow baseball, but I entreat you to stay with me for this one. “I don’t like sports” lots of people Right,
- [Tales From the Tavern Q&A with Arielle Milstein-Brennan from Fantastic Knickknackery](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-qa-with-arielle-milstein-brennan-from-fantastic-knickknackery/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk to Arielle Milstein-Brennan from Fantastic Knickknackery about vending at game conventions. You can find her at ariellemilstein.com https://www.instagram.com/aaaaaaarielle https://bsky.app/profile/arielleishere.bsky.social Let's get to the questions! Tell us about your shop: What's it called, what kind of items
- [Tales From the Tavern Q&A with John of Fox and Boar Games - and Druskara, and Public Access!](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-qa-with-john-of-fox-and-boar-games/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with John from Fox and Boar games. You can check out their work here: https://www.youtube.com/@foxandboargames Bluesky @foxandboargames Instagram @foxandboargames Facebook @foxandboargames Patreon.com/foxandboargames HI John, thanks for talking with us. Your company, Fox and Boar Games, publishes
- [Tales From the Tavern Q&A with Sohrab Rezvan of Flat Mountain Publishing, Tunnels and Trolls, and DnD 5.5](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-qa-with-sohrab-rezvan-of-flat-mountain-publishing/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Sohrab Rezvanof Flat Mountain Publishing. You can find his work here: YouTube, Instagram: @FlatMountainPublishing Website: https://www.flatmountainpublishing.com Hi, Sohrab, thanks for talking with us. You’ve written children’s books, and now a Dungeons & Dragons campaign for
- [Tales From the Tavern Q&A with Dungeon Damsel](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-qa-with-dungeon-damsel/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Xane and Bunni from Dungeon Damsel.You can find their work at http://druskara.com http://dungeondamsel.com http://youtube.com/@TheDungeonDamsel https://www.facebook.com/TheDungeonDamsel Hi, thanks for talking to us!. Let’s start with Dungeon Damsel. What do you do and how did it start? Xane:
- [TotalCon Review, Traveller 5e and TTRPG Book Club](https://shadomain.com/totalcon-review-traveller-5e-and-ttrpg-book-club/) - By Jason Campbell This past weekend I attended one day of TotalCon (aka Total CONfusion), a 4 day gaming convention held annually at the Best Western Royal Plaza in Marlborough, MA. TotalCon is a smaller regional convention but is the largest game convention in New England. I walked the vendor floor, visited with folks and
- [Campaign Diary: Each Scene has Two Points of View](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diary-each-scene-has-two-points-of-view/) - By Jason Campbell In the Numenera campaign I’m running we had an interesting encounter that underscores how players and game masters can view a scene completely differently. That can give us some insight into planning TTRPGs. The Scenario The characters were heading through the wilderness on their mechanical wagon when they came across a large
- [BACKERKIT-PALOOZA! Blades ‘68 and More](https://shadomain.com/preview-blades-68-backerkit-campaign/) - By Jason Campbell Evil Hat has just launched a crowdfunding campaign on Backerkit for a new supplement for the Blades in the Dark TTRPG called Blades ‘68. Today we’re looking at the campaign and the 40 page free preview. And last week a bunch more cool TTRPGs went live on Backerkit, so we're talking about those
- [1983: D&D Everywhere All at Once ](https://shadomain.com/1983-dd-everywhere-all-at-once/) - By Jason Campbell For the past few decades if you heard a friend was running D&D you could be pretty certain what they meant. Wizards of the Coast (and TSR before that) has published a single version of the D&D rules at a time (although 3e and 3.5e would have been available in stores simultaneously,
- [Philadelphia Area Gaming Expo Review](https://shadomain.com/philadelphia-area-gaming-expo-review/) - By Jason Campbell The 3rd Philadelphia Area Gaming Convention (aka PAGE) took place in Oaks, PA (about 45 minutes Northwest of Philadelphia) from January 15th through January 18th. The 2026 PAGE was expanded greatly from the previous year, and had nearly 3000 attendees. Special Guests included Frank Mentzner, Jeff Dee, Anna B. Meyer, Matt Forbeck,
- [What To Prepare And What To Improvise Before a TTRPG Session](https://shadomain.com/what-to-prepare-and-what-to-improvise-before-a-ttrpg-session/) - By Jason Campbell As a GM of weekly games, I spend an hour or two prepping for the next game session. I don’t usually use published adventures, so I’m usually creating the plot threads and locations. I look back at our group notes from the previous session and create some encounters based on my guesses
- [PAGE Preview - The Philadelphia Area Game Expo](https://shadomain.com/page-preview-the-philadelphia-area-game-expo/) - by Jason Campbell This week PAGE gaming convention happens in Pensylvania from January 15-18, 2026. As of the writing of this article, badges are still available at www.phillygamingexpo.com PAGE is in its third year, and although it's still a small game con, it's grown immensely. The list of special guests is huge and impressive, including
- [Resolutions - RPG Folks Set Goals for 2026](https://shadomain.com/resolutions-rpg-folks-set-goals-for-2026/) - by Jason Campbell Welcome to 2026 and best wishes to all. Every year we set goals for the coming year for Shadomain and look back at our progress on the goals we set for the previous year. This time we also asked a bunch of creators, designers and game masters for their goals for 2026.
- [Looking Back at My First Issue: Dragon Magazine #58](https://shadomain.com/looking-back-at-my-first-issue-dragon-magazine-58/) - By Jason Campbell I first discovered Dragon magazine in the early 80s and soon had a subscription as an annual Chritsmas gift. Most of those issues fell victim over the years to my parents’ damp basement, but the image of that first issue - #58 - was forever burned into my memory, so I managed
- [Update: Humor in TTRPGs](https://shadomain.com/humor-in-ttrpgs/) - By Jason Campbell Note: this is an update and expansion to an article first published in May 2023. Humor is a big part of many ttrpg sessions, but should it be a part of the written rules? That’s a big question. First we'll take a look at some roleplaying games that incorporate humor in the
- [Read Through: RiverBank from Kobold Press](https://shadomain.com/read-through-riverbank-from-kobold-press/) - By Shadomain Staff Note: Kobold Press kindly provided a complimentary PDF copy of RiverBank RPG for this review, but no other compensation was received. We did back this crowdfunding campaign, but appreciate the support of Kobold Press. RiverBank is a cozy TTRPG of animals and whimsy, created and written by Kij Johnson and published by
- [Tales From the Tavern Q&A with JeffBaker of When Suddenly! Games](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-qa-with-jeffbaker-of-when-suddenly-games/) - by Shadomain Staff NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com.Today we talk to Jeff Baker of When Suddenly! Games. You can find him here: https://bsky.app/profile/whensuddenly.games https://whensuddenly.games/ website https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/whensuddenlygames/the-crypt-has-opened Kickstarter pre-launch Let's hear from Jeff! Hi Jeff, thanks for talking to us. Let’s start with the newest-latest.
- [Campaign Diaries: Are Plot Threads For the Characters or the Players?](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-are-plot-threads-for-the-characters-or-the-players/) - By Jason Campbell When I run a TTRPG campaign we have a mostly emergent story. I don’t write a prewritten story, my preferred way is to give the characters three plot threads and let them choose what they’d like to do. Usually the plot thread is an idea with only the first few scenes established.
- [Tales From the Tavern Q&A with Zeal Zaddy About A Midwinter's Terror](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-qa-with-zeal-zaddy-about-a-midwinters-terror/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Scott from ZealZaddy about their current TTRPG crowdfunding campaign, A Midwinter's Terror. You can find them at https://zealzaddy.com/. Hi Scott, thanks for talking to us. You’ve got a new TTRPG crowdfunding campaign on Backerkit now.
- [Tales From the Tavern Q&A with Peter Saloom](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-qa-with-peter-saloom/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Peter Saloom about their TTRPG projects including their current Kickstarter, https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/peartreestudio/echoes-of-beacon-island-for-savage-worlds You can find him on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556429124598 You can find his products at DTRPG at https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/publisher/26261/pear-tree-studio Let's hear from Peter! Hi Peter, you’ve got
- [What Makes a Narrative Game?](https://shadomain.com/what-makes-a-narrative-game/) - By Jason Campbell In TTRPG player circles many games are labelled as “more narrative", usually compared to Dungeons & Dragons. What exactly does “narrative” mean in this context? We should begin by saying that most TTRPGs can be played in any style; you could play an adventure in Pathfinder or Dungeons & Dragons focused entirely
- [Flip Throughs - Harrow the Blighted Plane and More of Underground Oracle's Latest Releases](https://shadomain.com/flip-throughs-underground-oracles-latest-releases/) - by Jason Campbell NOTE: A copy of Harrow: the Blighted Plane was provided to Shadomain by Underground Oracle, but no other compensation was provided for this review.Today we look at the latest releases and news from Underground Oracle - a TTRPG publisher creating products for many game systems. Keeping up with their releases can be
- [Read Through: Making Enemies, by Keith Amman](https://shadomain.com/read-through-making-enemies-by-keith-amman/) - By Jason Campbell Note: A complimentary copy of Making Enemies was provided to Shadomain for review. Additionally I provided advice on creating monsters for the Cypher System and helped in playtesting the monsters in this book. Today we’re looking at TTRPG author Keith Ammann’s book Making Enemies, a book of monster design inspiration for tabletop
- [Tales From the Tavern Q&A with David W.](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-qa-with-david-w/) - by Shadomain Staff NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with David W., a longtime D&D and TTRPG player and fan, who runs games at area libraries. Let's hear from David! How did you get into Gaming, and Tabletop Role Playing Games? A
- [Pro GMing with Jack from Of Gods and Gamemasters](https://shadomain.com/pro-gming/) - by Jack Kellum (guest writer) Hi. I’m Jack, and I’m a professional gamemaster, or Pro Gm for short. I run a variety of games throughStartplaying.com on my Discord, focusing on theater of the mind and a cinematic experience. I also makematerial for a bunch of different tabletop roleplaying games both on free my website and
- [A Crowdfunding Story](https://shadomain.com/a-crowdfunding-story/) - By Jason Campbell We just concluded our first successful crowdfunding campaign for our upcoming game, Six-Gun Doomsday and I wanted to summarize my thoughts on our campaign, and on crowdfunding in general. Introduction: This Wasn’t (Exactly) Our First Rodeo We had released a few short adventures in PDF only, but a few years ago I
- [RPG News: TTRPG Kids’ StoryGuider Crowdfunding Campaign](https://shadomain.com/rpg-news-ttrpg-kids-storyguider-crowdfunding-campaign/) - By Shadomain Staff The team at the ENnie awarded TTRPGkids has a crowdfunding campaign currently on Backerkit called StoryGuider - it’s a set of coloring book adventures for ages 2-7. What a great way to get new people into our favorite hobby - start them really young! And by using a coloring book, you’re starting
- [The Great TTRPG Game Show](https://shadomain.com/the-great-ttrpg-game-show/) - ..........................
- [Cypher “Evolved” - My View versus ChatGPT](https://shadomain.com/cypher-evolved-my-view-versus-chatgpt/) - By Jason Campbell You may have heard that Monte Cook Games has a crowdfunding campaign for a new version of the Cypher System, called Cypher: Faster. Easier. And Even Better! The campaign ends Sept. 26, 2025. FULL DISCLOSURE: Because the kind folks at Monte Cook Games knew that I was planning a Backerkit campaign for
- [The Burden of Improv - Where Should it Fall?](https://shadomain.com/the-burden-of-improv-where-should-it-fall/) - By Jason Campbell The idea for this article came from a recent episode (“Yes and it’s a Lot to Manage, No but it’s part of the System”) of the Monsters and Treasures podcast (by Daniel Norton and KR King, it’s one of my favorites, check it out). The question asked there was “in games where
- [A Tales From the Tavern Q&A with John from Let's Quest](https://shadomain.com/a-tales-from-the-tavern-qa-with-john-from-lets-quest/) - by Shadomain Staff NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we speak with John Johnson from Let's Quest about their non-profit work helping schools and libraries with TTRPG support. You can find them at www.LetsQuestAfterSchool.org Let's hear from John! What came first, wanting to help
- [Campaign Diaries - When is a Trap Not a Trap?](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-when-is-a-trap-not-a-trap/) - By Jason Campbell We had an interesting scene in my weekly Numenera (TTRPG by Monte Cook Games) session. For background, there are four characters and the party isn’t optimized for combat as you might expect in other games. That’s partly due to the Numenera setting leaning heavily into exploration and I think it's partly the
- [Self Publishing: Serif and Sans-Serif Fonts](https://shadomain.com/self-publishing-serif-and-sans-serif-fonts/) - By Jason Campbell Today we’re talking about designing books for RPG creators who self-publish. In the way of full disclosure, I studied visual design and have been working in the field, mostly in typographic design, for more than 30 years. However what follows are only opinions and often used guidelines, but there are exceptions to
- [Six-Gun Doomsday Preview - Character Creation](https://shadomain.com/six-gun-doomsday-preview-character-creation/) - As with all cypher games, in Six-Gun Doomsday, players can create characters by choosing their descriptor, type and focus. To jump right into the adventure you can instead use Character Profiles such as Gunfighters, Shaman,Gamblers, Eccentric Inventors, The Possessed, and Seekers of Redemption. By answering 3 simple questions you create a character, then add your
- [Six-Gun Doomsday - Weird West + Gothic Horror + Post-Apocalypse](https://shadomain.com/six-gun-doomsday-weird-west-gothic-horror-post-apocalypse/) - After the U.S. Civil War as the Union expanded west through the lands the indigenous peoples called home, a horrifying torrent of malevolence was released on the world, its cause still unknown. The macabre creatures and forces unleashed destruction on all, leaving the scarce survivors nearly hopeless. The few scattered heroes were left with only
- [Six-Gun Doomsday Preview - Gunfight Rules](https://shadomain.com/six-gun-doomsday-preview-gunfight-rules/) - You gonna pull those pistols or whistle Dixie? - from The Outlaw Josey Wales. Gunfights or duels are an important part of many western stories, with the tension elevated by the actors, scenery and other parts of the encounter beyond just two people meeting at high noon to shoot at each other. These rules for
- [Six-Gun Doomsday Preview - Death and Options](https://shadomain.com/six-gun-doomsday-preview-death-and-options/) - Ain’t flesh. Ain’t armor. Ain’t luck. It’s the echo of survival itself. In Six-Gun Doomsday damage, lack of food or water and confronting the Spirits of Doom can cause a character to lose a level from their Life pool. When a character’s Life pool reaches zero the character would be lost to the Spirits of
- [Six-Gun Doomsday Preview - Damage and Health](https://shadomain.com/six-gun-doomsday-preview-damage-and-health/) - The world breaks more than bodies. It tears at memory, courage, and sanity. The Spirits of Doom will tear that from us all. But some folks just don’t fall—not yet. At the core of the setting of Six-Gun Doomsday is the struggle between the Spirits of Life (the positive forces and spirits that remain) and
- [Our Backerkit Campaign for Six-Gun Doomsday Launches Today!](https://shadomain.com/our-backerkit-campaign-for-six-gun-doomsday-launches-today/) - By Shadomain Staff Today we launch a crowdfunding campaign for our latest TTRPG adventure and setting, Six-Gun Doomsday. Six-Gun Doomsday is a tabletop role-playing game adventure and setting about survival after a gothic horror apocalypse set in the weird west of an alternate Earth, ten years after the end of the U.S. Civil War. It
- [A Tales From the Tavern Q&A with Wes Allen of DM Tales](https://shadomain.com/a-tales-from-the-tavern-qa-with-wes-allen-of-dm-tales/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk to Wes Allen, the creator of the YouTube channel and blog DM Tales. You can find him here: Youtube: https://www.Youtube.com/@dmtalesttrpg Web: https://www.dmtales.com Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/dmtales.bsky.social Mastodon: https://dice.camp/@dmtales Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dmtalesttrpg/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dm_tales Now let's hear from Wes! How
- [Read-Through: New books for Blades in the Dark](https://shadomain.com/impressions-new-books-for-blades-in-the-dark/) - By Jason Campbell Blades in the Dark is a RPG created by Johnathan Harper and released by Evil Hat productions in 2017. It uses a modified version of the Powered by the Apocalypse game system and is one of the most popular independent RPGs. The game includes the rules as well as a setting, the
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview: Crazy Weasel](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-crazy-weasel/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Crazy Weasel, a TTRPG gamer and designer. You can find him at: Website: https://bit.ly/CrazyWeaselGaming Instagram: https://bit.ly/CWGInsta Bluesky: bsky.app/profile/crazyweaselgaming.bsky.social DriveThru RPG: bit.ly/CWGDTRPG Now let's hear from Crazy Weasel! What came first in your gaming life: board
- [Parallel Actions in 5e](https://shadomain.com/parallel-actions-in-5e/) - By Jason Campbell I’d thought about running 5e without initiative order in combat and instead having every character’s turn happen simultaneously, round by round. I thought about it again when I watched The Informal Games’ YouTube video called “No Initiative! Parallel Actions”. Avoiding initiative not only simplifies the game but makes it go smoother and
- [Running 5 Games in 6 Days](https://shadomain.com/running-5-games-in-6-days/) - By Jason Campbell Recently I ran 5 sessions of TTRPGs from a Friday through the following Wednesday. I didn’t realize this until I’d already committed to all of these games, and at first I thought that was a lot to prep and run. Looking back on it, it’s not much different than running at a
- [What is Core to a RPG Ruleset?](https://shadomain.com/what-is-core-to-a-rpg-ruleset/) - By Jason Campbell Homebrewing RPGs has been a popular activity since the birth of the hobby and now with so many open licenses, designers can often publish their own rules variations. This brings up the question - when is a game no longer the game it started as? You can change the rules to Dungeons
- [Running an Open-Ended Mystery with a Guest Player as the NPCs!](https://shadomain.com/running-an-open-ended-mystery-with-a-guest-player-as-the-npcs/) - By Jason Campbell At PAXeast 2025, I ran our recently released murder mystery TTRPG, Hint, in the Alexandria RPG Library room, where all sorts of games are run throughout the convention. The game was scheduled for a maximum of 6 players, but it was accidentally over sold and 8 players showed up to play. I
- [Read-Through: High Noon at Midnight: Beyond the Golden Vault](https://shadomain.com/review-beyond-the-golden-vault/) - Note that Shadomain.com was given a complimentary digital copy of this publication for review purposes. No other compensation was received for this review. Beyond the Golden Vault is a 5e compatible TTRPG supplement. It was developed by a creative team lead by Anthony Anderson, and written by Jackson Wagner, Anthony Anderson (EpicBlunders), Danny Kodicek (DnDWithPlumbing),
- [Read-Through: High Noon at Midnight: Peril in Pinebrook](https://shadomain.com/review-peril-in-pinebrook/) - By Jason Campbell Peril in Pinebrook is an introductory Dungeons & Dragons adventure for new Dungeon Masters and new D&D players, published for free in PDF form by Wizards of the Coast in late 2023. It’s important to note what this adventure was created for. It is NOT intended as a replacement for starter adventures
- [Read-Through: High Noon at Midnight: Tales of the Valiant Game Master's Guide](https://shadomain.com/review-tales-of-the-valiant-game-masters-guide/) - By Jason Campbell NOTE: no money or concessions were provided in exchange for this review. Tales of the Valiant is a 5e based RPG published by Kobold Press. The first book, Player’s Guide, was released in early 2024. Overview The Tales of the Valiant Game Master’s Guide is exceptionally well done. It is the best
- [Read-Through: High Noon at Midnight- It’s Only Magic](https://shadomain.com/review-its-only-magic/) - By Jason Campbell Monte Cook Games has released their latest modern fantasy genre book for the Cypher System TTRPG, It’s Only Magic, by Sean K. Reynolds, Shanna Germain and Dominique Dickey. The book is a result of a spring 2023 backerkit campaign, and is now available for purchase in hardcover or PDF, and there’s also
- [Read-Through: High Noon at Midnight](https://shadomain.com/review-high-noon-at-midnight/) - By Jason Campbell NOTE: no books or monetary gifts were provided in exchange for this review. High Noon at Midnight is a genre and setting book for Cypher System games centered on the Weird West. The book was part of a successful Backerkit campaign in the Spring of 2024 from Monte Cook Games. It was
- [Favorite TTRPG Settings (Excluding Current WotC settings)](https://shadomain.com/favorite-ttrpg-settings-excluding-current-wotc-settings/) - By Jason Campbell with our audience Today’s topic came from an idea mentioned on Ghostfire Gaming’s Eldritch Lorecast TTRPG podcast/video series, “What is your favorite TTRPG setting, but not including those published by Wizards of the Coast in the 5e era?” Me First I asked many friends and colleagues and we got some interesting answers,
- [RPG News: Galactic & Going Rogue Kickstarter](https://shadomain.com/rpg-news-galactic-going-rogue-kickstarter/) - by Shadomain Staff Today we're highlighting a ttrpg Kickstarter campaign open now from Jumpgate Games. Galactic & Going Rogue: Two TTRPGs of War Among the Stars features two ttrpgs inspired but different stories in the Star Wars universe. "Riley Rethal’s Star Wars trilogies-inspired Galactic is a GMless TTRPG for 2-6 players about rebellion, relationships, and
- [How many TTRPG Books Have We Played?](https://shadomain.com/how-many-ttrpg-books-have-we-played/) - By Jason Campbell Our TTRPG book case has five shelves, full of game books. There’s some duplicates since GamerMomLuna and I merged our TTRPG game book collections <3. I also have my collection of AD&D 1e modules and magazines in a separate magazine rack, to leave more room for books in the book shelves. Today
- [Bringing the Table Together: A First Look at Game Gather](https://shadomain.com/bringing-the-table-together-a-first-look-at-game-gather/) - By Melissa Campbell aka GamerMomLuna If you've ever missed a local game night because you didn’t see the Facebook event until it was too late, you're not alone—and you're exactly who Game Gather was built for. I recently had the chance to speak with Nick Townley, the founder of Game Gather, a new platform created
- [Campaign Wrap-Up: 3+ Years of Ptolus](https://shadomain.com/campaign-wrap-up-3-years-of-ptolus/) - By Jason Campbell At the end of March my players and I finished a weekly 5e campaign that began in January of 2022. It was really a great time so I’d like to share some thoughts. We began with characters at 1st level and finished at 20th level. We began the campaign with 4 players
- [Exploring the World of Rollacrit](https://shadomain.com/exploring-the-world-of-rollacrit/) - A Nerdy Lifestyle Brand for Gamers By Melissa Campbell aka GamerMomLuna Rollacrit, a Delaware-based company, is making waves in the tabletop gaming community by blending the nostalgia of ThinkGeek with a fresh focus on board gamers. Derek Konyshak, the company’s events manager, shared insights into Rollacrit’s journey and what sets them apart from other tabletop
- [Lethal Shadows: A Family Business Revolutionizing the Miniatures Market](https://shadomain.com/lethal-shadows-a-family-business-revolutionizing-the-miniatures-market/) - By Melissa Campbell aka GamerMomLuna At PAX East, the Lethal Shadows booth was hard to miss. It was a striking display of custom miniatures, glittering dice, and engraved coasters that drew in both gamers and collectors. Founded by Patrick Rami, Lethal Shadows is a family-run business that’s all about quality, creativity, and expanding what’s possible
- [TTRPG Random Thoughts](https://shadomain.com/ttrpg-random-thoughts-4/) - By Shadomain Staff TTRPG Random Thoughts is an occasional feature that collects some ideas and opinions about role playing games - things that don’t warrant an entire article but are still worthy of note. Here’s our thoughts for today: Changing Your Mind Whether you’re new to TTRPGs or an experienced player, you’ve probably been in
- [Dungeons & Dragons 5e and Magic Items](https://shadomain.com/dungeons-dragons-5e-and-magic-items/) - By Jason Campbell D&D players want more magic items, and then more magic items, and maybe a magic item. So how do you meet player expectations and still run a challenging game? Magic Item Themes in Different Editions of D&D Earlier games such as the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons first and second editions gave player
- [Campaign Diary - My Favorite Puzzle](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diary-my-favorite-puzzle/) - By Jason Campbell In my most recent fantasy campaign I created a new puzzle for the characters which was challenging but still enjoyable. The Setup The characters were following a mystic map which would lead to an ancient powerful artifact. When the characters reach the end point they find an enormous black granite cube, 10’
- [Self Publishing: Advice About Layout](https://shadomain.com/self-publishing-advice-about-layout/) - By Jason Campbell Today we’re talking about designing books for RPG creators who self-publish. In the way of full disclosure, I studied visual design and have been working in the field, mostly in typographic design, for more than 30 years. However what follows are only opinions and often used guidelines, but there are exceptions to
- [High Level Campaign Diary: Scheduling](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-scheduling/) - By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 19th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview: Dr. Mike O’Sullivan from Palaeogames](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-dr-mike-osullivan-from-palaeogames/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Dr. Michael O'Sullivan from Palaeogames - a TTRPG company created by three Palaeontologists. You can find his work here: https://palaeogames.com https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/palaeogames/professor-primulas-portfolio-of-palaeontology https://discord.gg/prNU5ufgyp Hi Dr. O’Sullivan, thanks for talking with us. Your company, Palaeogames, is in
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview: Brenden from Crossroad Games](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-brenden-from-crossroad-games/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Brenden Hill about Crossroad Games. You can find Crossroad Games at: www.crossroadgames.comwww.facebook.com/crossroadgames Let's hear from Brenden! Tell us about your company, Crossroad Games. Is it online, or a brick and mortar store?Crossroad Games is a
- [Our Latest RPG Release - Hint](https://shadomain.com/our-latest-rpg-release-hint/) - Today we release our latest TTRPG game, Hint! Hint is a one-shot adventure inspired by classic murder mystery board games. Created by Jason Campbell, it uses an open mystery system, so neither the players nor the GM know the solution to the crime until the climax of the adventure. Hint is available in two formats;
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview: Dave from Grimwood Games](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-dave-from-grimwood-games/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Dave from Grimwood Games about their latest game, Plaguebound (the Backerkit campaign launches March 13) and lots more. You can find his work at http://www.grimwood.games/plaguebound https://www.youtube.com/@grimwoodgames http://www.twitch.tv/Grimwood_Games OK, let's get to the interview! Let’s start
- [RPGs for Accessible Gaming Charity Bundle Launches](https://shadomain.com/rpgs-for-accessible-gaming-charity-bundle-launches/) - (from the press release) RPGs for Accessible Gaming has officially launched, with over 240 games from 110 community creators for a donation of $10 or more to support DOTS RPG Project. In the tabletop industry, physical dice are plentiful for sighted individuals but scarce and often unaffordable for those who are blind or visually impaired.
- [RPG News: Sentience RPG Kickstarter](https://shadomain.com/rpg-news-sentience-rpg-kickstarter/) - The Kickstarter campaign for the TTRPG Sentience finishes up this week, and it's definitely worth checking out. In Sentience, you take on the roles of terraforming robots who gained sentience before humanity has returned to settle on the planet. Together, you and your group will help forge a new future for robotkind. The player characters as
- [Designing for Character Success](https://shadomain.com/designing-for-character-success/) - By Jason Campbell The core of games like Dungeons & Dragons is conflict. Whether that is a spoken conflict that results in combat, a social encounter with differences in philosophy, or characters negotiating a puzzle or trap, conflict drives most stories. For most RPGs as the characters get more powerful the opponents’ powers increase to
- [Using Narrative: Get to the Good Stuff](https://shadomain.com/using-narrative-get-to-the-good-stuff/) - By Jason Campbell Recently I saw someone ask, “How can a GM make shopping scenes fun?” Of course the immediate reaction is, if it’s not fun, skip it. Or if it’s only fun for some of the players but not all, have an out of game discussion to come to a compromise. But if any
- [High Level Campaign Diary – Jan. 1, 2025](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-jan-1-2025/) - By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 18th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [Minimal TTRPG Prep - An Agile Methodology?](https://shadomain.com/minimal-ttrpg-prep-an-agile-methodology/) - By Jason Campbell One of the most common pieces of advice given to game masters is to prepare less for each session. The idea is to prepare only a session ahead, so that you don’t write a lot that doesn’t get used when the players do something unexpected. This is in opposition to writing a
- [High Level Campaign Diary – Dec. 18, 2024](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-dec-18-2024/) - By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 18th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [High Level Campaign Diary – Dec. 11, 2024](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-dec-11-2024/) - By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 18th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [DOTS RPG Project launches Signature Braille RPG Dice](https://shadomain.com/dots-rpg-project-launches-signature-braille-rpg-dice/) - Today we bring you an important RPG news item from DOTS RPG project DOTS RPG Project proudly announces the launch of the world’s first mass-produced braille polyhedral dice! A passion project over five years in the making, the DOTS RPG Project is proud to announce the launch of their Signature Braille RPG Dice. These unique
- [High Level Campaign Diary – Dec. 4, 2024](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-dec-4-2024/) - By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 18th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Andrew Kolb](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-andrew-kolb/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today’s Tales From the Tavern interview is with Andrew Kolb, noted artist, writer and ttrpg designer. We wanted to ask him about his newest release. But let’s let Andrew tell you about his work: Sure! So I’m Andrew Kolb,
- [Knowing the Rules - Is It Important?](https://shadomain.com/knowing-the-rules-is-it-important/) - By Jason Campbell It’s been said before but as a GM for a ttrpg you don’t have to know all of the rules. You don’t have to know most of them. Sure, you should probably be familiar with the basics. In a fantasy or sci-fi game you should have a basic idea of how combat
- [High Level Campaign Diary – Nov. 27, 2024](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-nov-27-2024/) - By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 17th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [Part Two - 10 Ways to Draw Your Friends Into TTRPGs Beyond D&D 5e](https://shadomain.com/part-two-10-ways-to-draw-your-friends-into-ttrpgs-beyond-dd-5e/) - By Scott Mohnkern Today we feature the first of a two part article from guest writer Scott Mohnkern. Scott has been playing RPGs since the days of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons and Traveller. A network security professional and avid board gamer, he hosts weekly board gaming sessions and bi weekly ttrpg sessions in suburban Maryland.
- [10 Ways to Draw Your Friends Into TTRPGs Beyond D&D 5e](https://shadomain.com/10-ways-to-draw-your-friends-into-ttrpgs-beyond-dd-5e/) - By Scott Mohnkern Today we feature the first of a two part article from guest writer Scott Mohnkern. Scott has been playing RPGs since the days of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons and Traveller. A network security professional and avid board gamer, he hosts weekly board gaming sessions and bi weekly ttrpg sessions in suburban Maryland.
- [Using an Unreliable Narrator](https://shadomain.com/using-an-unreliable-narrator/) - by Jason Campbell The unreliable narrator is a common trope in fiction, so can it be used well in a RPG adventure? The answer is yes, but certain precautions should be considered. Readers Versus Players In fiction an unreliable narrator can be used to add a twist to the story. When the reader encounters this,
- [High Level Campaign Diary – Nov. 20, 2024](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-nov-20-2024/) - By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 17th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [High Level Campaign Diary – Nov. 14, 2024](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-nov-14-2024/) - By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 17th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [It Was the Best of Tolkien,It Was the Worst of Tolkien (for TTRPGs)](https://shadomain.com/it-was-the-best-of-tolkienit-was-the-worst-of-tolkien-for-ttrpgs/) - By Jason Campbell OK, as a fan, there’s nothing wrong with Tolkien as far as novels and world building. Today we’re looking at how compelling and enthralling the world of Middle Earth is and what can be learned by GMs running RPGs in their own worlds. Tolkien’s In-depth World Tolkien’s legendarium describes a world and
- [You Hate AI Game Masters, Right? Are You Sure?](https://shadomain.com/you-hate-ai-game-masters-right-are-you-sure/) - By Jason Campbell Over the last few years we’ve heard a lot about Artificial Intelligence game masters - TTRPGs run not by a human, but by a computer program. The TTRPG largely claims they hate this idea, but let’s look at it closely. AI Game Masters - We Hate That! If you’ve played TTRPGs for
- [High Level Campaign Diary – Nov. 6, 2024](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-nov-6-2024/) - Jason Campbell October 30, 2024 3 min read By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 17th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign
- [The Darkest House - What it Tells Us About the Core of TTRPGs](https://shadomain.com/the-darkest-house-what-it-tells-us-about-the-core-of-ttrpgs/) - By Jason Campbell It uses it’s own system with conversion rules. It uses the levels of each system to convert, implying that this is the core differentiation between ttrpgs The Darkest House is a combination mega adventure and rpg game system from Monte Cook Games. It’s available as a book or an app for Mac
- [High Level Campaign Diary – Oct. 30, 2024](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-oct-30-2024/) - By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 16th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [Cypher System RPG: Weapons and Damage](https://shadomain.com/cypher-system-rpg-weapons-and-damage/) - By Jason Campbell In the Cypher System RPG from Monte Cook Games characters make an attack roll in combat to determine if the attack is successful. If successful the damage done is a static amount, usually either 2, 4 or 6 points. Recently there was a post from a gamer new to the Cypher System
- [High Level Campaign Diary – Oct. 23, 2024](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-oct-23-2024/) - By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 16th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [High Level Campaign Diary – Oct. 16, 2024](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-oct-16-2024/) - Jason Campbell October 9, 2024 3 min read By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 16th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign
- [Theme Versus Tone - Part 2: Theme](https://shadomain.com/theme-versus-tone-part-2-theme/) - By Jason Campbell This is the second of a two-part series of articles. The first focused on tone, you can read it here. GMs creating RPG adventures and settings will spend time trying to create a certain tone or theme for their game, so it’s a good idea to discuss the difference between these terms.
- [High Level Campaign Diary – Oct. 9, 2024](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-oct-9-2024/) - By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 16th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [Theme Versus Tone - Part One: Tone](https://shadomain.com/theme-versus-tone-part-one-tone/) - By Jason Campbell GMs creating RPG adventures and settings will spend time trying to create a certain tone or theme for their game, so it’s a good idea to discuss the difference between these terms. Theme is an underlying idea for a story, like love and loss. Tone is the feeling you get from the
- [Crowdfunder: Dragon Town and the Darkness Below](https://shadomain.com/crowdfunder-dragon-town-and-the-darkness-below/) - by Shadomain Staff Today we wanted to recommend a new Kickstarter campaign with 21 days to go (as of October 2, 2024). It's JP Coovert's Flick Silverpen's Guide to Dragon Town and the Darkness Below. It's described as "A hardcover collection of system-neutral fantasy adventures set in a whimsical town and the winding and weird
- [Review: Fantasy Wargaming](https://shadomain.com/review-fantasy-wargaming/) - By Jason Campbell It’s 1982. At 14 years old, I’m obsessed with Dungeons & Dragons, constantly re-reading the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons books. At Waldenbooks a new book catches my eye - Fantasy Wargaming - a new roleplaying game, and I happily grab it and dive into it as soon as I get home. Fantasy
- [RPG News: Labyrinth by Kobold Press](https://shadomain.com/rpg-news-labyrinth-by-kobold-press/) - By Shadomain Staff Disclosure: Shadomain was provided a preview PDF to review for promotional purposes. On September 23 Kobold Press launched a Kickstarter campaign for a new TTRPG campaign setting for 5e based games called Labyrinth. The press release describes the campaign as: Review/Preview The artwork for Labyrinth is top notch, embracing deep purples and
- [Free the Magic in Fantasy BBEGs](https://shadomain.com/free-the-magic-in-fantasy-bbegs/) - By Jason Campbell In many fantasy TTRPGs it can be difficult for the GM to challenge higher level player characters. Many standard monsters have spells common to wizards, but these may not make them powerful enough to be a strong challenge for the PCs. When creating or modifying monsters remember that you don’t have to
- [High Level Campaign Diary – Sept 18, 2024](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-sept-18-2024/) - By Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 16th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [Dear Hasbro](https://shadomain.com/dear-hasbro/) - By Jason Campbell Dear Hasbro, Inc.; Did Dungeons & Dragons 5.24 buff player character abilities and options to sell more books? Yes. Is this a good idea? No, and it flies in the face of Hasbro’s stated goals (as a public company their primary goal by definition is to increase profits for their shareholders.) That
- [High Level Campaign Diary - Sept 11, 2024](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary-sept-11-2024/) - by Jason Campbell I’ve been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook’s Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 16th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [TTRPGs for Accessible Gaming CharityBundle launches](https://shadomain.com/ttrpgs-for-accessible-gaming-charitybundle-launches/) - TTRPGs for Accessible Gaming Charity Bundle launches TTRPGs for Accessible Gaming Charity Bundle with 139 community creators launches to support DOTS RPG Project. TTRPGs for Accessible Gaming launches today, with 318 games from 139 community creators for a donation of $10 or more to support DOTS RPG Project. DOTS RPG Project is proud to announce
- [Thoughts From Running Games at Cypher Con 2024](https://shadomain.com/thoughts-from-running-games-at-cypher-con-2024/) - By Jason Campbell This past weekend there was a virtual online collection of TTRPGs run from Friday through Sunday called CypherCon 1.0. The games run all use the Cypher System or other games from Monte Cook Games. More notes later on CypherCon, here's my thoughts from the three games I Game Mastered. Moving the Spotlight
- [High Level Campaign Diary](https://shadomain.com/high-level-campaign-diary/) - By Jason Campbell I've been running a weekly 5e campaign in Monte Cook's Ptolus setting since January 2022, the player characters are currently 16th level. It can be difficult to run a 5e game with higher level characters while keeping the game challenging and the players engaged. This campaign diary series features notes from my
- [Character Arcs](https://shadomain.com/character-arcs/) - By Jason Campbell Character arcs are integral parts of many TTRPGs and are used in many other RPG campaigns. The general definition is a story arc for a single character and often begins as a stated goal. Often each character in a long form campaign begins with their own character arc which may have rewards
- [Shadomain - Our Plan For the Next Year](https://shadomain.com/shadomain-our-plan-for-the-next-year/) - By Shadomain Staff Shadomain.com began a few years ago at the beginning of September, so each year we build a project plan outlining and planning out our goals for the following year. Of course our obligation to continue writing weekly TTRPG content comes first, but the project plan outlines something outside of our weekly work,
- [TTRPG Random Thoughts](https://shadomain.com/ttrpg-random-thoughts-3/) - By Shadomain Staff TTRPG Random Thoughts is an occasional feature that collects some ideas and opinions about role playing games - things that don’t warrant an entire article but are still worthy of note. Here’s our thoughts for today: Dungeon economics I see a lot of GMs, particularly newer GMs, asking for lists of how
- [StoriesRPG - An Actual Play Podcast](https://shadomain.com/storiesrpg-an-actual-play-podcast/) - by GamerMomLuna For the last few months, I've had the extreme privilege of working on an actual play podcast called StoriesRPG, where we've been playing through a story called Transdimensional High - a high school for kids who... aren't exactly humans. StoriesRPG is described by creator Michael Low as "an AP series designed for all-ages
- [Tales From the Tavern Inteview With Austin Conrad](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-inteview-with-austin-conrad/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we hear from Austin Conrad, a writer and editor mostly working in TTRPGs. Sometimes he's freelance, other times he's creating his own stuff. He's best known for his indie publications for Chaosium's "RuneQuest." He's also a member of
- [Top 10 Monte Cook Games Products](https://shadomain.com/top-10-monte-cook-games-products/) - By Jason Campbell A recent series of videos from the crew at Cypher Unlimited discussed the hosts’ top 10 products from Monte Cook Games, the publisher of TTRPGs like Numenera and Old Gods of Appalachia. This inspired me (this is Jason C typing) to create my own top 10, which might be controversial in places
- [The Long History of D&D Mid-Edition Updates](https://shadomain.com/the-long-history-of-dd-mid-edition-updates/) - By Jason Campbell This past weekend (August 1-4, 2024) saw a limited release at Gencon 2024 of the latest Dungeons & Dragons Player's Handbook from Wizards of the Coast - the book will be in wide release in September. A lot of the talk about this edition over the past few years has focused on
- [Tales From the Tavern - Mike Shea of Slyflourish.com](https://shadomain.com/rpg-views-mike-shea-of-slyflourish-com/) - It's Wednesday so it's time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we'll hear from Mike Shea; writer, independent RPG publisher and data scientist. You can find him at https://slyflourish.com Let's get started! What attracted you to TTRPGs? At the time, back in the late 80s, mostly the interesting mechanics tied
- [Pitching TTRPG Games Sessions](https://shadomain.com/pitching-ttrpg-games-sessions/) - By Shadomain Staff Running games at conventions, online or at your friendly local game shop is great, you should do it all the time! But… you need players! Where do you find them? How do you find them? We asked other GMs for their best advice. Writing the Pitch In a lot of cases when
- [Why Five Room Dungeons? ](https://shadomain.com/why-five-room-dungeons/) - By Jason Campbell The past few years I hear more and more people who give TTRPG advice for GMs recommend the five room dungeon concept to build one shots. But where does the idea come from? Why five? Why a dungeon? The Origins of the Five Room Dungeon No idea comes from nothing, everything is
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Kage](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-kage/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Kage, a TTRPG writer and community manager, you can find her here: ragekagegames.com/twitch.tv/rage_kage_gamesbsky.app/profile/ragekagegames.comtiktok.com/@rage_kage_gamesCommunity Discord server: discord.gg/8CKQ6qw Let's get to the questions! How did you get started in TTRPGs? My wife actually got me into TTRPGs!
- [Shadomain's Jason C and GamerMomLuna Got Married!](https://shadomain.com/shadomains-jason-c-and-gamermomluna-got-married/) - We're taking this week off to explore Thedas on our honeymoon.
- [A D&D Conspiracy Theory - Obelisks In Real Life](https://shadomain.com/a-dd-conspiracy-theory-obelisks-in-real-life/) - By Jason Campbell Caution: the following article suggests theories which are almost certain to be untrue so proceed with caution. But it involves the TTRPG Dungeons & Dragons’ lore intruding on the real world, so what the heck, let’s check it out! IRL Monoliths! In late 2020 in the deserts of Utah people found a
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With FennecFables](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-fennecfables/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with FennecFables, a ttrpg YouTuber and influencer. You can find them at Youtube- https://www.youtube.com/@FennecFablesTwitter- https://twitter.com/GrimmRayneBluesky- https://bsky.app/profile/raynegrimm.bsky.socialEtsy- https://www.etsy.com/shop/FennecFables Let's get started! How did you get started in ttrpgs? I actually got started ages ago around the age
- [Dice as Storytellers](https://shadomain.com/dice-as-storytellers/) - By Jason Campbell For some TTRPG groups it’s a problem when a die roll yields an improbable result. If you’re playing games set in a fantastic setting like magical fantasy or science fiction you can lean into these results if you ask, “how could that be?” or “why would that happen?” The story created in
- [Tales of the Tavern Interview With Dungeon Mister Ty](https://shadomain.com/tales-of-the-tavern-interview-with-dungeon-mister-ty/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Dungeon Mister Ty, creator at https://adventureslang.com, you can find him as @dungeonmisterty or @adventureslang on X and Bluesky. Let's hear from Ty! How did you get started in TTRPGs? I started in 1983 while in
- [Free RPG Day is Next Weekend!](https://shadomain.com/free-rpg-day-is-next-weekend/) - By Shadomain Staff Hey, if you haven't heard, make sure you get to your Friendly Local Game Store this coming Saturday, June 22, 2024! Don't know where to go? Check out https://boardgamegeek.com/wiki/page/Friendly_Local_Game_Stores_(FLGS)_of_the_USAIf you're in the US, or cross your fingers and search in your browser. Begun in 2019, Free RPG Day works with many publishers
- [FREE Downloads from Our Kickstarter - The Light Fantastic](https://shadomain.com/free-downloads-from-our-kickstarter-the-light-fantastic/) - By Jason Campbell We have a Kickstarter campaign (live until June 18, 2024) for a collection of casual, fun TTRPG adventures for Monte Cook Games' Cypher System, you can check it out here:https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jasoncampbell/the-light-fantastic Today we have two FREE downloads to preview two of the adventures in The Light Fantastic. HINT is inspired by classic detective
- [RPG News: TTRPGs For Palestine](https://shadomain.com/rpg-news-ttrpgs-for-palestine/) - Today we wanted to highlight projects by our friend Jesthehuman, who is hosting a TTRPG charity bundle alongside 354 community creators to support Medical Aid for Palestinians. In response to the ongoing genocide in Palestine, Jesthehuman is hosting a TTRPG charity bundle alongside 354 creators to support Medical Aid for Palestinians who work for the
- [The Light Fantastic - A New Kickstarter Project from Shadomain](https://shadomain.com/the-light-fantastic-a-new-kickstarter-project-from-shadomain/) - Tomorrow (June 4, 2024) we launch a new Kickstarter for The Light Fantastic, a collection of casual, fun short adventures for Monte Cook Games' Cypher System. All the adventures come with maps and pre-generated characters. Why the Cypher System? This collection spans different genres and requires a flexible game system. The Cypher System is exactly
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Font Designer Delve Withrington](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Delve Withrington, a noted type designer (yes, he makes fonts!) He worked on what many of you might know as the "Dungeons & Dragons 5e" font with type design hero Jim Parkinson. Let's heear what
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Martin Thomas AKA Daddy Rolled a 1](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-martin-thomas-aka-daddy-rolled-a-1/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Martin Thomas, AKA as Daddy Rolled a 1! You can find him on his YouTube channel here, or at his blog here. He's got a new project Kickstarting next week (June 3, 2024) called Alchemy,
- [Unexpected Adventure Inspiration - Finding Nemo](https://shadomain.com/unexpected-adventure-inspiration-finding-nemo/) - By Jason Campbell Creating an adventure based on another source - one in a different genre - shouldn’t be a literal translation. The animated film Finding Nemo has no connection to epic magic and fantasy, but it can still inspire a fantasy adventure. Break the story down to its core themes and create something original
- [TTRPG Wayback Machine: D&D 1981](https://shadomain.com/ttrpg-wayback-machine-dd-1981/) - By Jason Campbell I started playing TTRPGs with the Moldvay edition of Dungeons & Dragons Basic (often called “the red book”) in the summer of 1981. We became obsessed with the game and soon moved on to Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (now known as “first edition”). I’d never seen or played a TTRPG before that,
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Sean and Mel from Meldar16](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-sean-and-mel-from-meldar16/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk to Sean and Mel, game designers from Meldar16. You can find them at https://meldar16.com https://www.instagram.com/meldar16 https://dice.camp/@Seandar16 https://meldar16.itch.io https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/publisher/20465/Meldar16 Let's hear from Meldar16! How did you get started in RPGs? Sean: When I was a kid, all
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Robby Howell](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-robby-howell/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Robby Howell, creator of the Enclave role playing game. You can find him at: Etsy shop: https://robbylavagames.etsy.com/ Discord server: https://discord.com/invite/KSBf2dUq YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@robbylavagames Let's hear from Robby! How did you get started in ttrpgs? I've
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Nick Perron of the Tabletopped Podcast](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-nick-perron-of-the-tabletopped-podcast/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Nick Perron, from the Tabletopped TTRPG podcast. You can also find them on Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. Let's hear from Nick! How did you get started in ttrpgs? When I was in highschool, I was
- [What the Heck is a "Shadomain"? - Creating an Old School Campaign](https://shadomain.com/what-the-heck-is-a-shadomain-creating-an-old-school-campaign/) - By Jason Campbell I discovered TTRPGs with the Moldvay Basic version of Dungeons & Dragons in 1981 (I wrote about it here). We played through a lot of AD&D modules. Inspired by the World of Greyhawk Gazeteer I soon went about creating my own world, named - you guessed it - Shadomain. The Map As
- [GM Issues: When Only a Few Players Participate in a Social Encounter](https://shadomain.com/gm-issues-when-only-a-few-players-participate-in-a-social-encounter/) - On our social media accounts (we're @shadomain everywhere) we recently asked the following question: TTRPG Game Scenario: The table is made up of strong role players, but sometimes a scene plays out with an extended conversation between 2 or 3 characters, with others not participating. If the others seem to be waiting for more action,
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Juicy Garland](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-juicy-garland/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we hear from Juicy Garland, a Boston-area drag queen and super nerd. She does tons of Actual Play content and is part of Tabletop Talespinners (TTN), an Actual Play network focused on diversity without tokenism with the best
- [Kobold Press - Campaign Builder: Dungeons and Ruins](https://shadomain.com/kobold-press-campaign-builder-dungeons-and-ruins/) - By Jason Campbell Kobold Press has a kickstarter going on right now for a new ttrpg book, Campaign Builder: Dungeons and Ruins. This is the latest book in their series of 5e based campaign builder series. Note: Kobold Press provided a free 12 page preview PDF to Shadomain.com for review. This Kickstarter will end on
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Grant Nordine](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-grant-nordine/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we hear from Grant Nordine of the Game Master Monday podcast. You can see Grant's work here: https://www.bellascomet.com https://www.twitch.tv/gamemastermonday https://linktr.ee/grant_nordine Let's jump right in! How did you get started in ttrpgs? I started getting into TTRPGs during the
- [How to Play the Cypher System - Character Types](https://shadomain.com/how-to-play-the-cypher-system-character-types/) - By Jason Campbell In Monte Cook Games’ Cypher System player characters aren’t defined by a class, but by a sentence. That sentence takes the form of “I am an adjective noun who verbs”, where the adjective is known as the descriptor, the noun is the type and the verb is the focus. An example would
- [Minimum Prep for a TTRPG Session](https://shadomain.com/minimum-prep-for-a-ttrpg-session/) - By Jason Campbell Every GM has their own methods for preparing for a TTRPG session. We all settle into a comfortable technique which usually takes approximately the same amount of time. But what if you couldn’t follow this routine? What would be the absolute minimum you would need to do to prep for a session
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Mistress Ari Winter](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-mistress-ari-winter/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Mistress Ari Winter host and player on many actual play ttrpg streams. You can find them at@gmistresswinter on BluSky, X, Threads, and Instagram.link tree: linktr.ee/mistresswinterThe Tabletop Talespinners Network is host for All Our Faults and can
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Kalum](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-kalum/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Kalum, Author of "Paris Gondo - The Life-Saving Magic of Inventorying" and "Rosewood Abbey". He is also the host/producer of multiple TTRPG podcasts under (proudly London-based) The Rolistes banner; The Rolistes Podcast Café Rolistes The
- [Hard and Soft Game Prep](https://shadomain.com/hard-and-soft-prep/) - By Jason Campbell How to prepare for a ttrpg session is always a topic of much discussion among game masters. Many writers and influencers recommend only prepping one session ahead. The reason for this is that the GM can’t anticipate what the players will do, so prepping only one session could keep you from creating
- [Tales From the Tavern - LIVE!](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-live/) - At PaxEast 2024 (March 21 - 24), Shadomain writer and editor GamerMomLuna hosted a live version of her TTRPG show Tales From the Tavern. The show streams monthly the first Sunday of each month from 8pm-10pm (ET) on Twitch, and later available on YouTube and as a podcast. Tales From the Tavern features 5 guests
- [Review: Index Card RPG](https://shadomain.com/review-index-card-rpg/) - By Jason Campbell Index Card RPG is a rules light ttrpg from Runehammer games. The hardcover printing is 400 pages (sized 6” x 9”). To the publisher’s credit the rules are released under a Creative Commons 4.0 license. The book is written, layed out and illustrated in a welcoming, casual style. It’s made to be
- [Character Building: Backstory and Emergent Discovery](https://shadomain.com/character-building-backstory-and-emergent-discovery/) - By Jason Campbell Many TTRPG players try to build characters who have a deep personality. Many people equate that effort with a long, deep backstory. Game Masters can see this as a positive (lots to dig into during the campaign) or negative (do I really have to read all of this?). Many other players avoid
- [Meta Points in RPGs](https://shadomain.com/meta-points-in-rpgs/) - By Jason Campbell and GamerMomLuna In a recent episode of Daniel Norton and KR King’s Monsters & Treasure podcast they discussed meta currency in RPGs; for instance inspiration in Dungeons & Dragons 5e. This is a fascinating topic as games continue to create different systems for meta currency. Meta currency is a term used to
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Jim aka RaiseGameFully](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-jim-aka-raisegamefully/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with JimRGF. You can find him at @raisegamefully and @raisegamefully.bsky.social on social media. Let's hear from Jim!Stuff You Do: Do you prefer GMing or Playing, and why? I am passionate about teaching people about older aspects
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Scott Fitzgerald Gray](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-scott-fitzgerald-gray/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with noted RPG writer Scott Fitzgerald Gray. Let's get right to it! How did you get started in TTRPGs? Do you remember the first game you played? I started with D&D, way back in the 1st-edition
- [Tales from the Tavern Interview with Redwyrmling, the 7 Year Old DM](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-redwyrmling-the-7-year-old-dm/) - Jason and GamerMomLuna had the opportunity to send Redwyrmling, the 7 Year Old DM, questions and hear some thoughts he had to share on Dungeons and Dragons, TTRPG publishing, and more! You can read his interview below, and listen to the interview on Anchor, or wherever you get your podcasts (Spotify link below) You can
- [Campaign Diaries: Mass Combat in 5e](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-mass-combat-in-5e/) - By Jason Campbell In the long term 5e campaign I’m GMing set in Monte Cook Games’ Ptolus setting I had the need to run a mass combat, as a barbarian horde approached to invade the city. I had read the Dungeon Masters’ Guide and what people like Mike Shea had written about mass combat. I
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Robert Kuntz](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-robert-kuntz/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Robert Kuntz, an early employee at TSR, and a noted game designer and philosopher. We asked him about his latest work, The 4th Category, available at https://threelinestudiostore.company.site. Let's get right to it: Your latest work
- [Review: The 4th Category](https://shadomain.com/review-the-4th-category/) - By Jason Campbell NOTE: a review copy of The 4th Category was provided to Shadomain.com free of charge. No other compensation was given in exchange for this review. This Wednesday, March 6, 2024, we also will have an interview with Mr. Kuntz. The 4th Category is a new publication from legendary TTRPG author and historian
- [Review: Kobold Guide to Roleplaying](https://shadomain.com/kobold-guide-to-roleplaying/) - By Shadomain Staff Kobold Guide to Roleplaying is the latest in Kobold Press’s Kobold Guide series covering many topics in the RPG space. This book contains 21 essays about roleplaying from well known creatives across the gaming community, such as Gail Simone, Luke Hart, Shanna Germain, Mike Shea, Luke Gygax, Keith Ammann, Bob “Worldbuilder” and
- [How To Play the Cypher System: What the Heck is a Cypher?](https://shadomain.com/how-to-play-the-cypher-system-what-the-heck-is-a-cypher/) - By Jason Campbell Cyphers are the core of the Cypher System, hence the name. Sort of. But what are they? Lots of things, really. The Cypher System is a genre agnostic TTRPG. The rules were the heart of the first game published by Monte Cook Games, Numenera. Soon afterwards the rules were extracted to create
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Varun From Tabletop Mirror](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-varun-from-tabletop-mirror/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk with Varun Singh, creator of https://tabletopmirror.com/Let's hear what they have to say! How did you get started in RPGs? I found D&D 3.5E through some friends back in high school. Following that, I met another group
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Tal Woodblaze](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-tal-woodblaze/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today we talk with Tal Woodblaze, a TTRPG creator at The Gamers Rest. You can find him at: social media @TheGamersRest Twitter, Threads, Facebook and Instagram kofi - https://ko-fi.com/talwoodblaze Youtube https://www.youtube.com/@thegamersrest/featured Email - Talwoodblaze@gmail.com Let's hear from Tal! How did you get
- [Things You (Maybe) Didn’t Know Are in the 2014 Dungeon Master’s Guide](https://shadomain.com/things-you-maybe-didnt-know-are-in-the-2014-dungeon-masters-guide/) - By Jason Campbell Hasbro/Wizards of the Coast has said they’ll release an updated version of the Dungeons & Dragons Dungeon Master's Guide later in 2024. Hopefully this upcoming book will be a great RPG resource, but do you know what’s in the 2014 Dungeon Master’s Guide? Here’s a few things that you might have forgotten
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Ty the DM](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-ty-the-dm/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk with Ty the DM, so let's get right to it! Stuff You Do: I am the DM for Will of the Dice’s actual play streams/podcasts.Social Media: Tyr_the_dm What artwork or piece of literature has inspired your
- [CrowdFunding Campaign: Making a Tabletop RPG for YOUR Particular Kid](https://shadomain.com/crowdfunding-campaign-making-a-tabletop-rpg-for-your-particular-kid/) - TTRPGkids has a crowdfundr campaign going on now for their upcoming book, "Making a Tabletop RPG for YOUR Particular Kid". You can get in on the rewards until February 16, 2024 Check it out here: https://crowdfundr.com/making-a-TTRPG-for-YOUR-kid?ref=ab_1iz9xATA2k11iz9xATA2k1 You can find TTRPGkids on all the socials if you have any questions!
- [Current RPG Crowdfunding Campaigns: Knight and SAGAs](https://shadomain.com/current-rpg-crowdfunding-campaigns-knight-and-sagas/) - Today we highlight two current RPG crowdfunding efforts which deserve your attention. First is SAGAS, the Setting And Genre Agnostic System rules light system by Okayest DM. It concludes on February 7, 2024, so check it out here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/okayestrpg/sagas-setting-and-genre-agnostic-system Next is Knight, a medieval era RPG focused on chivalric knights by Mark Baker. It concludes
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with GamerMomLuna](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-gamermomluna/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Holy Moly, we're talking to ourselves! Yes, today's interview is with contributing writer and RPG host and AP personality, GamerMomLuna! You can find her show on twitch the first Sunday of each month at 8pm ET at https://www.twitch.tv/gamermomluna or
- [How To Play the Cypher System: Resource Management](https://shadomain.com/how-to-play-the-cypher-system-resource-management/) - By Jason Campbell This is the first in a series of articles explaining interesting aspects of Monte Cook Games’ Cypher System RPG. The Cypher System is a genre agnostic role playing game, so it can be used to run fantasy, sci-fi, horror or anything else. It’s the core system behind other Monte Cook games such
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Jason C](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-jason-c/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Holy Schlamoley, we're interviewing ourselves! Today we talk to lead writer Jason C! You can find him, well, here! And on all the socials as shadomain. Let's see what he has to say! How did you first get started
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with M.T. Black](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-m-t-black/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk to noted RPG creator and author M.T. Black. You can find his work at https://www.mtblackgames.com/ and at https://twitter.com/MTBlack2567 Let's hear what he has to say! When did you first create the world of Iskandar (Celos)? I
- [How Many Classes is Enough?](https://shadomain.com/how-many-classes-is-enough/) - By Jason Campbell What defines your character in a RPG? Is it your personality? Your strengths and flaws? Your rich backstory? Many people would say it’s largely your character’s class. Of course there are many skill based and story based games that don’t have classes for player characters, but for better or worse, Dungeons &
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Al Spader](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-al-spader/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk to RPG designer and developer Al Spader. He is a freelance writer for Star Trek Adventures and designer of the Sentience 2d20 rpg. He's published numerous 5e Adventures and a collection of Monster of the Week
- [Campaign Diaries: One is the Loneliest Number](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-one-is-the-loneliest-number/) - By Jason Campbell Recently I ran a one-shot in the Old Gods of Appalachia game setting, which uses Monte Cook Games’ Cypher System. I ran this at a local game store, in a group where two of the six players knew nothing about the Cypher System and two others had only minimal experience with it.
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Mark Beren](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-mark-beren/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk with Mark Beren from Armoured Gaming. Mark is a TTRPG designer and teacher from Australia. Mark's latest Kickstarter is at https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/armouredgames/knight-remasteredYou can find Mark at: Discord: https://discord.gg/kA9vzmvArg and at X: @MarkBeren1 and at his web site: https://www.armouredgaming.com/
- [What Can We Learn From MCDM’s Recent Crowdfunding Campaign?](https://shadomain.com/what-can-we-learn-from-mcdms-recent-crowdfunding-campaign/) - By Jason Campbell MCDM wrapped up a Backerkit campaign for their new RPG last week, raising more than $4.6 million with more than 30,000 backers. This was during December, usually considered a bad month for crowdfunding because people may have earmarked their spending money for the holidays. In addition they used Backerkit instead of Kickstarter,
- [Tales From the Tavern - Jason Blevins](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-jason-blevins/) - Welcome to another Tales From the Tavern mini-interview! Today we talk to Jason Blevins (He/Him). Let's hear from Jason!Stuff You Do: I’m a co-founder and DM at Heroes and Hooligans. H&H is a TTRPG community which streams campaigns, short shots, one shots, play tests and talk shows on YouTube, twitch and twitter.Social Media: https://discord.gg/MDxnP8jehttps://twitter.com/Verdanzanzingerhttps://allmylinks.com/heroesnhooligans What attracted
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Josh Greenway](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-josh-greenway/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk with Josh Greenway, aka Dungeon Newbie. You can find him here: @ajoshofalltrades (instagram)@joshofalltweets (X/Twitter)@crashcoursedm (instagram, X/Twitter and YouTube)https://anythingyoucando.co/ Let's hear from Josh!Let us know what Stuff You DoA self-described Josh of all trades, my passion is
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Scott Harris-King](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-scott-harris-king/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk with Scott Harris-King, a comic book writer and artist and TTRPG creator who combines the two in his latest projects. You can find his work at his web site crimebustercomics . Check out his latest Kickstarter
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Brandon Hall](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-brandon-hall/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com In today's Tales From the Tavern interview we talk with Brandon Hall, a GM with a lot going on! You can find Brandon at https://bsky.app/profile/brandon.rpgetc.com and https://twitter.com/Brandon_S_Hall (although I'm not active there any longer)So let's hear from Brandon: Tell us about
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Kate O'Sullivan](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-kate-osullivan/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk with Kate O'Sullivan, TTRPG actual player. You can find here at:facebook.com/osullivankatepresenterfacebook.com/dndoctoratesinstagram.com/osullivankateinstagram.com/dndoctoratesx.com/dndoctorates Let's hear from Kate! Stuff You Do:I'm a member of the cast of both Dungeons & Doctorates (an actual-play TTRPG podcast about 3 PhD students
- [Campaign Diaries - Newbies Take the Adventure “Off the Track”](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-newbies-take-the-adventure-off-the-track/) - By Jason Campbell That’s a dangerous title, right? “Off the Track”, does that mean the adventure I’d prepped railroaded the PCs? Let’s take a look. Recently I ran a game of Dungeons & Dragons 5e for a group of players who’d never played before. It was a bachelor party where they were looking for something
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Matt From Mimics 'N' Misfits](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-matt-from-mimics-n-misfits/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk with Matt of MimicsNMisfits. You can find him as MimicsNMisfits across many platforms including Twitch, Youtube, Twitter, Facebook, BlueSky and Tiktok. He can personally be found as MimicsMatt on BlueSky. Let's hear from Matt!Stuff You Do:
- [Building the Three Pillars Using the “Five W” Questions](https://shadomain.com/building-the-three-pillars-using-the-five-w-questions/) - By Jason Campbell The Dungeons & Dragons Players Handbook describes three core pillars of the game; combat, exploration and social encounters. But how does a GM build scenarios that support these pillars? Answering the “Five W” questions (who, what, when, where and why) can help develop each of these encounter types. Let’s try it out!
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Alex Rinehart](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-alex-rinehart/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk with ttrpg GM Alex Rinehart. You can find him at: https://twitter.com/AlexRinehart_https://www.tumblr.com/blog/ale10anderhttps://bsky.app/profile/alexrinehart.bsky.socialLet's hear from Alex! Stuff You Do:I am a seattle-based storyteller and game designer. I focus on making games that are discrete experiences, with beginnings, middles,
- [TTRPG Random Thoughts](https://shadomain.com/ttrpg-random-thoughts-2/) - By Shadomain Staff TTRPG Random Thoughts is an occasional feature that collects ideas and opinions about role playing games - things that don’t warrant an entire article but are still worthy of note. Here’s our thoughts for this week: Why I’m a Forever GM I always describe myself as a “forever GM by choice.” I
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with KR King](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-kr-king/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk to KR King, who runs a YouTube channel on homebrewing a D&D campaign!You can find him at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCw_qbGKpPcxh5mjXJ--X2nA Let's hear from KR! What attracted you to TTRPGs?I loved the idea of building a world that players can
- [Review: The Lazy DM’s Forge of Foes](https://shadomain.com/review-the-lazy-dms-forge-of-foes/) - By Jason Campbell The Lazy DM’s Forge of Foes is a rpg book written by Teos Abadía, Scott Fitzgerald Gray and Michael E. Shea. It’s a tool to help GMs create, modify and run monsters and other foes in 5e based fantasy games. It’s the latest in the “Lazy Dungeon Master” series. It was recently
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With J (Skalds)](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-j-skalds/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk with J, aka Skalds, a variety GM, streamer and story writer. You can find him at @Skaldsstories for X and Twitch. Let's hear from Skalds! Do you prefer GMing or Playing, and why?I prefer GM because
- [2023 TTRPG Holiday Shopping Guide](https://shadomain.com/2023-ttrpg-holiday-shopping-guide/) - Are you still doing some holiday shopping for the TTRPG lover in your life? We've put together a list of websites and book suggestions to help you find some very cool places to shop! We also have some books listed that we think are great, so give those a look too! Nix’s House of Glass
- [Pax Unlimited 2023 Wrap-Up](https://shadomain.com/pax-unlimited-2023-wrap-up/) - By Jason C. and GamerMomLuna This year we went to the Pax Unplugged conference in Philadelphia December 1-3 2023. Today we’re giving you our thoughts on the con, so let’s get going! Overall Impressions Both: It was fun! This con was bigger than PazU 2023. You could tell even from the lines to get in
- [Live From Pax Unplugged: Tales From the Tavern Interview with Dragon Punch Squad](https://shadomain.com/live-from-pax-unplugged-tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-dragon-punch-squad/) - by GamerMomLuna GamerMomLuna got the chance to interview the crew from the Dragon Punch Squad podcast; Jacob, Timmy, Kelly and Mark. You can find their podcast at https://dragonpunchsquad.home.blog/ "This is my first time... at any game convention. Never been to any others, not even anime. Being so close to Christmas I plan on coming back
- [Live From Pax Unplugged - Tales From the Tavern Interview with Tom From the Inspired Incompetence Podcast](https://shadomain.com/live-from-pax-unplugged-tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-tom-from-the-inspired-incompetence-podcast/) - By GamerMomLuna Luna interviewed Tom from the Inspired Incompetence podcast live from the Pax Unplugged 2023 floor. Here's Tom’s commentary on Pax Unplugged 2023: “I walked in here from a smaller hometown kind of con(vention) into this. It does not compare. If you’ve never been to one of these, just imagine yourself walking around in
- [RPG Memories: My D&D Summer](https://shadomain.com/rpg-memories-my-dd-summer/) - by Jason Campbell I began playing Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (first edition) in the summer of 1981 and continued to play throughout the 80s. My first exposure to Dungeons and Dragons (or any role-playing game) was through an article in Dynamite magazine. Dynamite magazine’s article on Dungeons and Dragons Dynamite magazine was published by Scholastic
- [Chaotic Neutral - I Do Not Think it Means What You Think it Means](https://shadomain.com/chaotic-neutral-i-do-not-think-it-means-what-you-think-it-means/) - True confession here: I am not a fan of alignment in RPGs and I don’t require them in most of my campaigns. However some players find them useful as a sort of short hand for their characters’ belief system. I find it’s particularly useful in my campaigns for younger players. I also don’t have a
- [Guest Stars for Your Game](https://shadomain.com/gm-tips-guest-stars-for-your-game/) - OK dear readers, it’s storytime. In 2021 in my homebrewed Dungeons and Dragons 5e campaign the characters were tier 3 (say 12th level) and had taken on a long term quest made up of several tasks, mostly including dealing with different big bads. This game was online, so we played using Roll20.net for characters and
- [Review: The Weird](https://shadomain.com/review-the-weird/) - By Jason Campbell The Weird is a RPG book by Monte Cook Games. The book is 256 pages with really interesting artwork and design. The Weird is not a rulebook and it can be used in any RPG. It’s a tool to introduce strangeness into any RPG no matter the setting or system. 253 of
- [Common TTRPG Terms With No Agreement On What They Mean](https://shadomain.com/common-ttrpg-terms-with-no-agreement-on-what-they-mean/) - By Shadomain Staff Pacing Based on the general definiton of the term:the act or result of setting the rate of movement or progress, as of a story, movie, lesson, etc. This could mean the time that a game session or campaign takes, or speed of the progress of the story. Thanks to Robin Laws’ book
- [So, You Want To Run A Charity Event](https://shadomain.com/so-you-want-to-run-a-charity-event/) - By GamerMomLuna Running a charity TTRPG event can be a really rewarding experience for GMs, players, and stream audiences alike. I’ve been lucky enough to coordinate events for Extra Life for three years, as well as one-off fundraising events for World Central Kitchen. I’ve participated in a number of charity events too, and have seen
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Unformed Worlds](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-unformed-worlds/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk to Tom and Heather, the creators behind UnformedWorlds. Let's see what they have to say! How did you get started in TTRPGs? Tom: My older brother said, “You want to play a game?” They had decided
- [Alignment - Good, Bad or Ugly?](https://shadomain.com/alignment-good-bad-or-ugly/) - By Jason Campbell When I first started playing AD&D in the 1980s alignment was core to the game. The major restriction to the Paladin class, for example, was that they had to be Lawful Good. Detect Evil depended on every creature having an alignment. My friends and I were young and we were having fun
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Paul](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-paul/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we hear from Paul, a British expat living in the colonies (specifically, the US), generally in a state of merry confusion. He's been role-playing long enough to watch Stranger Things with nostalgia and he spends more time than
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Raffy](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-raffy/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk with Raffy. HI Raffy, thanks for talking with us. What do you do? Most of my free time, I play video games with friends and TTRPGs as both as a player and GM. Every now and
- [Campaign Diaries - Maintaining Player Agency](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-maintaining-player-agency/) - By Jason Campbell As I’d mentioned in previous Campaign Diaries, I’ve been running a short campaign this summer with Andrew Kolb’s Oz TTRPG setting using Monte Cook Games’ We are All Mad Here expansion for the Cypher System. We just wrapped up the campaign arc which got me thinking about whether I’d negatively affected player
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Maia](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-maia/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk with Maia, a newbie Dungeon Master and also a player in DND 5E and Pathfinder 2E games. Outside of gaming, she's a product designer, and finds that the creativity and problem-solving skills she uses in her
- [Writing a TTRPG Pitch](https://shadomain.com/writing-a-ttrpg-pitch/) - By Jason Campbell You’ve got a really cool idea for a TTRPG one-shot or campaign, now all you need are players. Whether you find your players through an online group, a bulletin board at your friendly local game store, or a text to your buddies, you need to write a short description to “sell” your
- [Using Description in TTRPGs](https://shadomain.com/using-description-in-ttrpgs/) - By Jason Campbell This description of a simple room could be from any TTRPG game session. What does it tell the players? There’s a few books on bookshelves, a tapestry, a candle, and a person gets up from a chair in the far end of the room. That’s about it. But what else do the
- [RPG News: Campaign Builder: Castles & Crowns Kickstarter](https://shadomain.com/rpg-news-campaign-builder-castles-crowns-kickstarter/) - On Tuesday, September 7th, 2023 Kobold Press's newest Kickstarter went live, for their latest product to help game masters everywhere. Here's information they provided to Shadomain.com: RULE YOUR REALM! Campaign Builder: Castles & Crowns provides the tools and resources to create and expand your world for fantasy kingdoms in your Tales of the Valiant and
- [Campaign Diaries: Mo’ Puzzles, Mo’ Problems](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-mo-puzzles-mo-problems/) - By Jason Campbell In my current 5e campaign set in Ptolus the pcs are 12th level and were trying to keep a magic artifact called the King’s Stone from a demon lord. Both the pcs and the demon were in a maze trying to find the artifact and the pcs arrived a few rounds ahead
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Jim Has Fun](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-jim-has-fun/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk to Jim Has Fun! You can find Jim on Bluesky: @jimhasfun.wnyrpg.com on TikTok: @jimhasfunonline What do you do, Jim? I run a couple of Savage Worlds campaigns, one Savage Rifts and the other Deadlands Noir. I work
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Savage Jeph](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-savage-jeph/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.comToday we talk with Savage Jeph, a Magic card nerd, avid make believer both on the gm side and player side and podcast host. You can find his info at https://linktr.ee/big_campaign_storiesLet's hear from Jeph! What is your favorite TTRPG?Pathfinder 1e
- [TTRPG Random Thoughts](https://shadomain.com/ttrpg-random-thoughts/) - By Shadomain Staff TTRPG Random Thoughts is an occasional feature that collects some ideas and opinions about role playing games - things that don’t warrant an entire article but are still worthy of note. Here’s our thoughts for today: GM anxiety Many GMs, especially at the start of their careers, are afraid they will “mess
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Brent/Dorkland Canada](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-brent-dorkland-canada/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we talk to Brent, AKA Dorkland Canada. Let's see what he has to say! How did you get started in TTRPGs? I got started in 1980 at the tender age of ten when I noticed a small poster
- [Review: Old Gods of Appalachia Roleplaying Game](https://shadomain.com/review-old-gods-of-appalachia-roleplaying-game/) - By Jason Campbell NOTE: no money or concessions were provided in exchange for this review. Old Gods of Appalachia Roleplaying Game is a tabletop roleplaying game published by Monte Cook Games. This book uses Monte Cook Games’ Cypher System rules and is the result of the hugely successful kickstarter campaign of 2022. The game is
- [Tales From the Tavern with Magnum PI](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-with-magnum-pi/) - Note: opinions expressed in interviews are those of our guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Welcome to another Tales From the Tavern mini interview with Magnum π. You can find them athttps://www.youtube.com/@initiativezero and https://twitter.com/magnum3141592 Let's hear from Magnum π! I'm a gamer, play-tester, nerd, geek, and a member of the actual play group Initiative Zero.
- [The Party Caller - An Old D&D Idea Whose Time Has Come Again?](https://shadomain.com/the-party-caller-an-old-dd-idea-whose-time-has-come-again/) - By Jason Campbell “As caller, Morgan relay’s the party’s actions to the DM after the characters decide what they want to do” Dungeons & Dragons (Basic Rulebook), page B59 In the 1981 Dungeons & Dragons Basic Rulebook (aka Moldvay basic, or the red book) in the example of Sample Dungeon Expedition it describes one player
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With Gurbintroll](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-gurbintroll/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com In today's Tales From the Tavern mini-interview we talk with Gurbintroll, a TTRPG game designer. You can find him at https://dice.camp/@Gurbintroll. Let's hear what he has to say! Stuff You Do: Over the last 16 years I've written and
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Riches and Liches](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-riches-and-liches/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we have an interview with Riches and Liches, a TTRPG YouTube Lore Channel This channel is relatively new but has gained a large following in a short amount of time. Let's hear what they have to say! How
- [Campaign Diaries: Oz Plus We Are All Mad Here](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-oz-plus-we-are-all-mad-here/) - By Jason Campbell Last month I began a campaign using Adrew Kolb’s Oz ttrpg setting and the rules of the Cypher System and its extension We Are All Mad Here. I expect this to be a short campaign of 4-8 sessions, but this is a guess. The campaign began with a couple of plot threads
- [RPG News: Cthulhu Dreamt TTRPG Kickstarter](https://shadomain.com/rpg-news-cthulhu-dreamt-ttrpg-kickstarter/) - The cwordfunding campaign for Cthulhu Dreamt TTRPG stats (today)m August 8, 2023. More than your average TTRPG, it's An original near-future Sci-Fi tabletop RPG system, including a fully-illustrated campaign with an accompanying heavy metal soundtrack. Check out the Kickstarter here!
- [Preview: Sky Zephyrs](https://shadomain.com/preview-sky-zephyrs/) - By Jason Campbell NOTE: The quickstart guide for Sky Zephyrs was provided to Shadomain by the authors for this preview. Sky Zephyrs - Gaumr and Sattva’s Comprehensive Guide to Airships and Sky Combat is a project kickstarting this August. The book is described as a “combat overlay” for Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition. The book
- [Review: Sly Flourish’s Lazy Dungeon Master Products](https://shadomain.com/review-sly-flourishs-lazy-dungeon-master-products/) - by Jason Campbell NOTE: No products or money were provided in exchange for this review. Mike Shea has been writing books under the umbrella of Sly Flourish’s Lazy Dungeon Master for a decade. These books are tools for game masters to become better at their craft. Although they often reference Dungeons & Dragons they are
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Jeremy Corff](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-jeremy-corff/) - Today we have a Tales From the Tavern mini-interview with Jeremy Corff, a graphic designer, adventure writer and creator of other content for Pathfinder and Starfinder, as well the weekly Starfinder blog at SoloRunStudio.com. You can find him at https://www.tumblr.com/belabrasand https://dice.camp/@SoloRunStudio OK, let's hear from Jeremy! What Game System have you not played that you
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with The Goblin's Notebook](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-the-goblins-notebook/) - Today for our Tales From the Tavern interview we talk with The Goblin's Notebook, who created a TTRPG site to help run games. Let's dive right in! How did you get started in ttrpgs?My main exposure to ttrpg was indirectly through various crpg series (Baldur's Gate, Icewind Dale, Neverwinter Nights, and Planescape Torment), but my first
- [Review: Kids on Bikes](https://shadomain.com/review-kids-on-bikes/) - By Jason Campbell NOTE: No products or money were provided in exchange for this review. Kids on Bikes is a TTRPG created by Jonathan Gilmour and Doug Levandowski, published by Hunters Entertainment and Renegade Game Studios in 2018. The book is available in deluxe hardcover, paperback and PDF. An updated second edition was funded in
- [7 Reasons to Play RPG Tabletop Games Solo](https://shadomain.com/7-reasons-to-play-rpg-tabletop-games-solo/) - By Solo RPG Guy Although RPG Tabletop Games are usually designed to be played by a group, there are reasons you might want to play these games solo. We consulted noted expert, Donald The Solo RPG Guy to see what he had to say about the topic. You can find his YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxqgElYzzdaT4haUp6Nmohg
- [Tales from the Tavern Interview with Star Shinobi](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-star-shinobi/) - Today we hear from the one and only StarShinobi about her experience in the TTRPG community! Let's see what she has to say! Stuff You Do: I am an actual play cast member on the WafflesMapleSyrup Pathfinder 2e campaign -Outcast and Outclassed. I also create magic items from time to time, have written for multiple
- [A Look at Ten Candles: A Roleplaying Game of Tragic Horror](https://shadomain.com/a-look-at-ten-candles-a-roleplaying-game-of-tragic-horror/) - By GamerMomLuna NOTE: No products or money were provided in exchange for this review. At PAX East 2022, I was able to pick up a copy of Stephen Dewy’s 81-page book, Ten Candles: A Roleplaying Game of Tragic Horror. I’d heard good things about the game, and for an affordable price of $28, you can
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Matt Kimberlin (Synthetic 20)](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-matt-kimberlin-synthetic-20/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Welcome to another Tales From the Tavern mini interview. Today we hear from Matt Kimberlin (Synthetic 20). You can find them at: Twitter - https://twitter.com/ASynthetic20 DMs Guild - https://www.dmsguild.com/browse.php?author=Matt%20Kimberlin Drive Thru RPG - https://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse.php?author=Matt%20Kimberlin Let's hear from Matt! What is your favorite
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Tom the Midwest Miniature](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-tom-the-midwest-miniature/) - Today we hear from Tom Nelson AKA MIDWEST MINIATURE GUY. You can find him here: www.facebook.com/midwestminiatureguywww.twitch.tv/midwestminiatureguyTwitter @MidwestMiniGuyInstagram @MidwestMiniGuyLet's see what he has to say! Stuff You Do: I'm a mini painter for gamers & collectors. I've been playing ttrpgs since 1990 and gming since 92. I've been painting minis for 24, and doing it professionally
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Stormbringer!](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-stormbringer/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Welcome to another Tales From the Tavern mini interview. Today we hear from Stormbringer a longtime TTRPG'er. You can contact him here on Twitter, but let's hear from him now: Stuff You Do: I'm a Software Engineer that specializes
- [(Kinda) Review - Kobold Press’s Tome of Beasts vol. 1 for 2023](https://shadomain.com/kinda-review-kobold-presss-tome-of-beasts-vol-1-for-2023/) - Note: Kobold Press provided a PDF copy of Tome of Beasts I (2023) for review. Kobold Press released Tome of Beasts I in 2016. Tome of Beasts is a 425 page book of monsters for use in 5e based fantasy role playing games. Since the initial release Kobold Press has refined their books in terms
- [Campaign Diary: Gilligan’s Island One-Shot](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diary-gilligans-island-one-shot/) - By Jason Campbell Recently I ran a group of players through a one-shot Cypher System adventure I call Three Hour Tour. The PCs play castaways inspired by the classic TV sit-com Gilligan’s Island, but their boat crashed on an island inspired by the Saturday Morning kids show Land of the Lost, so they have to
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with AAW - part two!](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-aaw-part-two/) - (Click Here to see our previous interview with AAW's Claire Stricklin)Today's Tales From the Tavern is with Adventures A Week Lead Designer Thilo Graf. AAW has released new tabletop roleplaying game adventures to subscribers every week since 2012 and they collect many of these adventures in print volumes. Let's hear from Thilo; How did you
- [Roleplay in Combat: Making combat more exciting](https://shadomain.com/roleplay-in-combat-making-combat-more-exciting/) - By GamerMomLuna “Oh, it’s my turn? Okay, I guess I’ll attack with my short sword.” Die roll. “That’s a… 22, not a natural 20 though. Does that hit?” “Yes, that would hit.” “Great, okay. The damage is… 7. That’s my turn then.” When players are in combat, it can become very easy to get trapped
- [Combatless encounters](https://shadomain.com/combat-less-encounters/) - By Jason Campbell TTRPG games like Pathfinder, Dungeons & Dragons and many others focus heavily on combat. In 5e based games there is the suggestion of three pillars of the game: social encounters, combat and exploration. While your group can lean into any of these and make use of all of them, combat is often
- [How to 5e without WotC](https://shadomain.com/how-to-5e-without-wotc/) - By Jason Campbell Many people who enjoy playing fantasy TTRPGs have been looking towards other game companies aside from Wizards of the Coast. Of course anyone looking for different types of games such as other genres, more narrative, or more “crunchy” systems is encouraged to look at other game systems. But for those looking for
- [The Monsters Live There, So Give Them Life](https://shadomain.com/the-monsters-live-there-so-give-them-life/) - By GamerMomLuna The PCs enter the cave, and make it through the first few areas without any real issues. There are no monsters, no traps, nothing that's a real threat. But whatever led them there is deeper down, or perhaps through the cave, so there's bound to be a fight sooner or later. Finally, they
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview With David Tilstra](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-david-tilstra/) - In today's Tales From the Tavern interview we hear from David Tilstra, a Voice actor! Streamer! TTRPG Performer! And the Dungeon master for the Dnd 5e actual play From Afar Podcast! Let's hear from David: Do you prefer playing TTRPGs online or in person, and why?Both! Any chance I get to play game with my
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with AlderDoodle](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-alderdoodle/) - Today we hear from Ramona, aka AlderDoodle! You can find her here: www.alderdoodle.co.uk twitter: twitter.com/Alderdoodle Instagram: instagram.com/alderdoodle Ko-Fi: ko-fi.com/alderdoodle Let's leave it to her: Stuff You Do I'm a lettering artist, illustrator and a purveyor of shiny ttrpg accessories under the name Alderdoodle. Drawing pretty things for nerds is my jam. Do you prefer GMing
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Adventure-A-Week](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-adventure-a-week/) - Today (and stay tuned next week...) we have an interview with Claire Stricklin, a member of the staff from Adventure A Week. Adventure A Week has released new tabletop roleplaying game adventures to subscribers every week since 2012. They've collected many of these adventures in crowd funded printed volumes, Let's hear from Claire! How did
- [RPG News - Mini-Dungeon Tome II Kickstarter](https://shadomain.com/rpg-news-mini-dungeon-tome-ii-kickstarter/) - The folks at Adventure-a-Week have a kickstarter for their book Mini-Dungeon Tome II that ends Thursday May 25. AAW has released new tabletop roleplaying game adventures to subscribers every week since 2012, and this project collects over 130 of these adventures for use in 5e TTRPG games. Check it out hereL https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/adventureaweek/mini-dungeon-tome-ii?ref=nav_search&result=project&term=mini-dungeons
- [Return of Tales From the Tavern!](https://shadomain.com/return-of-tales-from-the-tavern/) - The Tales From the Tavern ttrpg talk show returned from its hiatus on Sunday May 7, 2023. The show features host GamerMomLuna and 5 guests. The panel takes questions from their Twitch audience via chat for two hours. You can watch and participate the first Sunday night of each month at 8pm ET on GamerMomLuna's
- [Tales From the Tavern with Danny Kodicek](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-with-danny-kodicek/) - In today's Tales From the Tavern mini-interview we hear from Danny Kodicek. You can find Danny at https://twitter.com/DnDWithPlumbing and at linktr.ee/dndwithplumbing. Let's see what Danny has to say! I write adventures, monsters, guides, all kinds of things, as well as occasionally helping others with editing. I'm one of the original team behind Baba Lysaga's Nocturnes
- [Tales From the Tavern with Tim Imholt](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-with-tim-imholt/) - In today's Tales From the Tavern mini-interview features Tim Imholt. You can find him at https://twitter.com/TimothyImholt and https://www.instagram.com/timothyimholt/ Let's hear from Tim! I read a lot of fantasy novels, play online games and have been known to host a DND or ttrpg game night from time to time. What Game System have you not played
- [Tales From the Tavern with Craig Hatler](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-with-craig-hatler/) - Today we have another Tales From the Tavern mini-interview with Craig Hatler. You can find Craig's links here. Let's hear from Craig! I'm the IT Help Desk Manager for a small HBCU (historically black college/university) in Raleigh, NC. If I'm not playing TTRPGs I might be playing a board or card game, bowling, shooting pool,
- [Review: Kobold Press’s Tales of the Valiant Playtest Packet #3](https://shadomain.com/review-kobold-presss-tales-of-the-valiant-playtest-packet-3/) - This is a partial review of the third playtest packet for a new roleplaying game being developed by Kobold Press. The project was known as Project Black Flag and the game was titled Core Fantasy Roleplaying but the final title will be Tales of the Valiant. This game will be based on 5e with some
- [In Medias Res - the REALLY strong start](https://shadomain.com/in-medias-res-the-really-strong-start/) - By Jason Campbell If you’re familiar with Mike Shea (Sly Flourish’s) Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master and other writing “how to” sites you’ve heard about the idea of the “strong start”. This idea is that the Game Master prepares a ttrpg session so that it begins in an exciting way to immediately engage the
- [The Reasons One Shots Are Great Also Makes Them Hard](https://shadomain.com/the-reasons-one-shots-are-great-also-makes-them-hard/) - by GamerMomLuna I'm not good at playing one-shot games. Before anyone tries to make me feel better, let me explain why. Often times, a one shot is a great way to try out a system for the first time, maybe test it out to see if you like it. It's also great for fitting in
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview - Andrew Kolb](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-andrew-kolb/) - Today's Tales From the Tavern interview is with Andrew Kolb, noted artist, writer and ttrpg designer. But let's let Andrew tell you about his work: Sure! So I'm Andrew Kolb, author/illustrator/designer/cartographer behind both Oz: A Fantasy Role-Playing Setting and Neverland: A Fantasy Role-Playing Setting. When I'm not designing role-playing games I spend most of my time as an illustrator. Oh
- [Player Investment in  Large-Scale TTRPG Battles](https://shadomain.com/player-investment-in-large-scale-ttrpg-battles/) - by Jason Campbell Dungeons and Dragons was the first TTRPG and it evolved from miniature wargames. Still nearly 50 years later Dungeons & Dragons and similar games don’t often contain rules for running large-scale battles smoothly. The most common issues are: Battle slog - making dice rolls for initiative, to-hit and damage for large numbers
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview - Inkarnate](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-inkarnate/) - Today we're interviewing the team from Inkarnate, the online map making site. Let's jump right in! How did Inkarnate come to exist?Inkarnate was founded in 2012 with the goal of improving the TTRPG experience with a suite of digital tools.How many people work on/for Inkarnate?We have a small team of highly dedicated and talented artists,
- [Tales From the Tavern - Russ](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-russ/) - Today we're talking with Russ, who publishes a free D&D zine called d12 Monthly. He also runs a blog that features articles on solo gaming, web enhancements for the zine, and other TTRPG (mostly D&D) type topics.Social Media: https://yumdm.com/ website https://twitter.com/yum_dm insta: https://www.instagram.com/yum_dm/ Let's hear from Russ! Do you prefer GMing or Playing, and why?GMing by far.
- [Controversial Opinion: Wherefore Art Thou d10?](https://shadomain.com/controversial-opinion-wherefore-art-thou-d10/) - By Jason Campbell In Ye Old Days the D&D red box set (and the blue expert set) came with six dice: d4, d6, d8, d10, d12 and d20. That’s right, no “percentile” dice! When we needed to roll 1-100 we rolled a d10 twice, the first represented the tens digit and the second represented the
- [Learn a New TTRPG - Monster of the Week](https://shadomain.com/learn-a-ttrpg-monster-of-the-week/) - Many people are looking to learn different TTRPGs. Today we highlight a video from Roll With Me introducing the ttrpg Monster of the Week
- [How to Run a Horror Game from Seth](https://shadomain.com/how-to-run-a-horror-game-from-seth/) - Horro is one of the most popular genres fer TTRPGs, but running these games can be a challenge. Today we highlight a video from Seth Skorkowsky about how to run horrow TTRPGs well.
- [A Look at PAX East 2023](https://shadomain.com/a-look-at-pax-east-2023/) - By GamerMomLuna Note: GamerMomLuna received a free Special Guest pass to PAX East 2023 as compensation for appearing on a panel. No other special compensation was provided to Shadomain.com staff. PAX East descended upon Boston’s Seaport District over the weekend of March 23 through March 26, 2023. With it came a multitude of gamers of
- [Tales From the Tavern - Allie Gowins](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-allie-gowins/) - Today we're talking with Allie, so let's go! Stuff You Do: I am the Game Goddess for the podcast Dice Drop: Evolution. We're a Mutant's & Masterminds actual play podcast. I also love being in live-streamed TTRPG games for charity or just for fun. I am a graphic designer, freelance, and my professional day job.
- [Tales From the Tavern - Shannon Roby](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-shannon-roby/) - Today we're talking to Shannon! Let's hear from her! Stuff You DoPlay TTRPGs (mainly D&D), stream D&D every week, cosplay, and voice act!!Social Media: https://linktr.ee/shannonroby Do you prefer GMing or Playing, and why?I prefer playing, I find GMing to be a bit overwhelming. I prefer to play one character at a time. What is your favorite
- [Learning New TTRPGs: FATE Core](https://shadomain.com/learning-new-ttrpgs-fate-core/) - Many people are looking for new TTRPGs. Today we highlight a video from Dungeon Newbs Guide teaching you how to play the FATE Core TTRPG. It's a great game if you're into more narrative systems.
- [Create Wonder in Your Game](https://shadomain.com/create-wonder-in-your-game/) - Today we highlight a video from Emergent GM discussing how to create a sense of wonder with description in your TTRPG game.
- [Campaign Diaries - I Am a Terrible Player](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-i-am-a-terrible-player/) - By Jason Campbell I am a GM for life by choice but I occasionally play TTRPGs so I can experience how other GMs run their game. Recently I played in a 5e Dungeons & Dragons game at a RPG weekend. I created a character based on a character concept. The character has enough of a
- [Review: Planar Bestiary for 5e](https://shadomain.com/review-planar-bestiary-for-5e/) - By Jason Campbell Note: Shadomain.com received no complimentary products or other compensation in exchange for this review. Monte Cook Games The Planar Bestiary for 5e is a recent book from Monte Cook Games. It’s available in hardcover and PDF and there’s a free preview available on their web site: https://www.montecookgames.com/store/product/planar-bestiary/ The planar bestiary is a
- [Tales from the Tavern with Daddy Rolled a 1](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-with-daddy-rolled-a-1/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Welcome to another Tales From the Tavern mini interview. Today we hear from Daddy Rolled a 1! Let's see what he has to say: I've been blogging around TTRPGs and other hobby stuff (comics, Star Wars, Star Trek, fantasy
- [Your Opinions: Which are Your Favorite Dice?](https://shadomain.com/your-opinions-what-is-your-favorite-dice/) - We asked the question, Why are your favorite dice your favorites? Is it the look, the size? Do they seem to roll luckier than others? Do you associate them with a particular ttrpg memory? Here are the answers we received: My favorite dice is not because it rolls well. I prefer the chaos. I have
- [Tales From the Tavern with Adrian Berk](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-with-adrian-berk/) - NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Welcome to another Tales From the Tavern mini interview. Today we hear from Adrian Berk: I'm an English professor for a local college, mainly focused with a program that offers college courses to local High Schools. Alongside some 20+
- [Video Highlight: 5 Things DMs Wish Players Knew](https://shadomain.com/video-highlight-5-things-dms-wish-players-knew/) - Today we highlight a video from the Dungeon Dudes discussing 5 Things DMs Wish Players Knew (works for GMs of other TTRPGs tpp!).
- [Tales from the Tavern interviews Jack Berkenstock, Jr. of The Bodhana Group](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interviews-jack-berkenstock-jr-of-the-bodhana-group/) - Jason and GamerMomLuna had the opportunity to sit down and interview Jack Berkenstock, Jr of The Bodhana Group. The three talked about the use of TTRPGs and board games in a therapeutic setting, as well as the training opportunities they provide for individuals and organizations interested in learning more about using the approach in their
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Bowtie](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-bowtie/) - In today's Tales From the Tavern interview we talk with Bowtie, who came back to TTRPGs after a 30 year absence! Let's hear from him...Stuff You Do:I don't game very much, and just got back into it about 2 years ago after not playing for about 30 years. I spent a couple of decades playing
- [RPG News - TTRPGkids at Gary Con Ethereal](https://shadomain.com/rpg-news-ttrpgkids-at-gary-con-ethereal/) - Check out TTRPGkids at Gary Con Ethereal (virtual)! TTRPGkids is sponsoring a designated kid-friendly discord channel for Gary Con Ethereal (virtual)! This means that it’s a comfortable spot for kids to play tabletop RPGs during the virtual convention. They're also setting up panels featuring creators from the indie TTRPG community and a workshop about making tabletop RPGs
- [Creating A Great Backstory With the Dungeon Dudes](https://shadomain.com/creating-a-great-backstory-with-the-dungeon-dudes/) - This video from The Dungeon Dudes gives some great advice to help to create backstories. At 28 minutes the video goes pretty in depth giving ideas for players and game masters.
- [Learn a New TTRPG: Quest](https://shadomain.com/learn-a-new-ttrpg-quest/) - Here's a video from Dicebreaker reviewing the TTRPG Quest. It's a great game for new and younger players.
- [Review: Random RPG Book Club](https://shadomain.com/review-random-rpg-book-club/) - Note: Chris Korczak, Bookseller did not provide any of the products mentioned or any other compensation to shadomain.com in exchange for this review. The Random RPG Book Club is a subscription service from Chris Korczak, Bookseller. It’s an interesting subscription where you get a random used TRPG book or two regularly. Each delivery costs $17.49
- [Review: Kobold Press Kobold Guide to Dungeons](https://shadomain.com/review-kobold-press-kobold-guide-to-dungeons/) - By GamerMomLuna Disclaimer: Kobold Press provided a complimentary PDF copy of their latest release to shadomain.com for use in this review. Kobold Press has a new book coming out, and at only 110 pages, it’s sure to be a quick read for anyone looking for information about dungeons! Kobold Guide to Dungeons is the latest
- [Learn a new TTRPG - Blades in the Dark](https://shadomain.com/learn-a-new-ttrpg-blades-in-the-dark/) - Today we highlight a video from Drop Dice introducing new players and GMs to the TTRPG Blades in the Dark, from John Harper and Evil Hat Games.
- [Running an Intro Session for an RPG Game System](https://shadomain.com/running-an-intro-session-for-an-rpg-game-system/) - By Jason Campbell With recent interest in TTRPGs other than Dungeons and Dragons, I’ve been running “intro sessions” to other game systems. I’ve done this with Blades in the Dark, but most often I’ve done this with Monte Cook Games’ Cypher System, as I’ve been running and playing this game system for 3-4 years. I’ve
- [Tales From the Tavern interviews TTBenjamin](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-with-ttbenjamin/) - The Tales from the Tavern you’re familiar with is back! Sort of. Jason and GamerMomLuna had the opportunity to sit down and interview TTBenjamin recently, and recorded it for everyone! The three talked TTRPG systems, streaming/podcasting, and his latest project, Gamewoven! You can check out the YouTube video here, or if podcast is more your style, check
- [Tales from the Tavern interviews Dave Scott, Evil Genius Games](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interviews-dave-scott-evil-genius-games/) - Jason and GamerMomLuna had the opportunity to sit down and interview Dave Scott of Evil Genius Games recently, and recorded it for everyone! You can find Evil Genius Games on Twitter or at their website. The three talked about Everyday Heros, TTRPG Licensing and more! You can check out the YouTube video here, or if podcast is
- [Tales from the Tavern interviews Redwyrmling, the 6 Year Old DM](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interviews-redwyrmling-the-6-year-old-dm/) - Jason and GamerMomLuna had the opportunity to sit down and interview Redwyrmling, the 6 Year Old DM recently, and recorded it for everyone! See what Redwyrmling had to say about his favorite monster, which dragon would win in a fight, and his advice for all Dungeon Masters! You can check out the YouTube video here, or if
- [Review - A Weekend of Gaming with Adventure Away](https://shadomain.com/review-a-weekend-of-gaming-with-adventure-away/) - By GamerMomLuna This is not a sponsored review. We were not given any compensation or benefit in return for a review of our experience with Adventure Away. Over the weekend of February 17-19, Jason and I embarked on an “adventure away” to play Dungeons and Dragons for the weekend with 3 other couples and a
- [Intro to Pathfinder 2e](https://shadomain.com/intor-to-pathfinder-2e/) - Given the recent interest in trying new TTRPG systems, today we highlight a video from Taking20 giving an overview of Pathfinder Second Edition
- [Review: Kobold Press's Campaign Builder Cities & Towns](https://shadomain.com/review-kobold-presss-project-black-flag-playtest-packet-1-1-2/) - Note that Kobold Press provided a complimentary PDF copy of their latest release to shadomain.com for use in this review.. By Shadomain Staff Campaign Builder Cities & Towns is a new book from Kobold Press compatible with Dungeons & Dragons 5e. The book contains helpful advice for Dungeon Masters on how to create a fantasy
- [I Ran ANOTHER Game - and I Still Liked It!](https://shadomain.com/i-ran-another-game-and-i-still-liked-it/) - By GamerMomLuna The goal of New Gamemaster Month is to encourage new or less seasoned GMs to step into the seat with some helpful hints and information about specific games. I chose to learn about how to run a game of Monster of the Week, and ran a game of it with a group of
- [Review: Kobold Press’s Project Black Flag Playtest Packet #1.1](https://shadomain.com/review-kobold-presss-project-black-flag-playtest-packet-1-1/) - by Jason Campbell and GamerMomLuna This is the first playtest packet for a new roleplaying game being developed by Kobold Press. The project is known as Project Black Flag and as of now the game is titled Core Fantasy Roleplaying. Here’s what we found in this packet. Core Fantasy Roleplaying Overall Kobold Press has said
- [Intro to the Cypher System from Qedhup](https://shadomain.com/intro-to-the-cypher-system-from-qedhup/) - If you're looking to try a new TTRPG, check out the Cypher System, a genre independent game system which can be used to play any type of adventure, from Monte Cook Games.Today we highlight a video from Qedhup which gives an intro to the Cypher System.
- [Being Original , with Terible Writing Advice](https://shadomain.com/being-original-with-terible-writing-advice/) - Today we highlight a video from Terrible Writing Advice about "being original" which can also be inspiring for TTRPG GMs and players. NOTE: if you're new to Terrible Writing Advice, it's similar to the social media theme "wrong answers only". Have fun!
- [Using OneNote to Manage TTRPGs](https://shadomain.com/using-onenote-to-manage-ttrpgs/) - Today we highlight a video from Icarus Games about using OneNote to manage TTRPGs.
- [How To Make a Faux Wax Seal](https://shadomain.com/how-to-make-a-faux-wax-sealed-letter/) - by guest author Mat “Role Play Chat” Copelli In this article we talked about the importance of using handouts in your tabletop RPG sessions. Today, I’d like to share with you a step-by-step process for making your own wax sealed letter. These straightforward Character handouts are something I often use my games to add a
- [Creating Tabletop RPG Encounters For Kids](https://shadomain.com/creating-tabletop-rpg-encounters-for-kids/) - by Steph, guest writer Today's post is written by guest author Steph. Steph is a parent to an awesome kid, an engineer and professor, and a major TTRPG, Star Trek, Dr. Who, etc geek who loves making, writing about, and running games and stories for others. They run the TTRPGkids website, which is a free resource
- [Why You Should Make Handouts](https://shadomain.com/why-you-should-make-handouts/) - by guest author, Mat “Role Play Chat” Copelli When we play a tabletop roleplaying game, we are actively immersing ourselves into a different world or setting or place trying to embody a character that’s taking part in a collaborative adventure. We each have our own level of preference to how actively we are “putting on
- [What Do Players Want From Their GMs?](https://shadomain.com/what-do-players-want-from-their-gms/) - We asked some TTRPG players the following questions: What Do You Want From a GM? What’s Something You Like to See From a GM? Let's see what we got for answers! That all-important Player Agency: Knowing what my character's choices are and then, subsequently, that that choice mattered Maitreyi As a player, I am pretty
- [New Gamemaster Month in Review](https://shadomain.com/new-gamemaster-month-in-review/) - By GamerMomLuna January marks New Gamemaster Month, a month of learning about how to be a GM and learning a system that will be run at the end of the month. The idea is to provide inspiration, advice, and a step-by-step process that guides prospective GMs up to and through their first game. The New
- [Mimics N Misfits Actual Play](https://shadomain.com/mimics-n-misfits-actual-play/) - Today we highlight the TTRPG stream Mimics N Misfits!Check them out and find all their links here: https://www.mimicsnmisfits.com/
- [Tales From the Tavern with AJ Pickett](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-with-aj-pickett/) - Note: opinions expressed in interviews are those of opur guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Welcome to Tales From the Tavern - web edition! Today we talk with TTRPG creator and YouTuber AJ Pickett. You can find his videos at https://www.youtube.com/@AJPickett Now let's hear from AJ! How did you get started in TTRPGs?I think the
- [Tales From the Tavern with Vahid from Dice Legenz](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-with-vahid-from-dice-legenz/) - Note: opinions expressed in interviews are those of our guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today we have another Tales From the Tavern mini interview with Vahid of Dice Legenz! Dice Legenz is a professional D&D show filmed from a studio in New Zealand. Our cast and crew are all from the television and theatre
- [Tales From the Tavern with Busy Wyvern](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-with-busy-wyvern/) - Today we have another Tales From the Tavern mini interview with Busy Wyvern. He reviews things he likes on the blog and posts about random thoughts around gaming that some might find interesting or helpful. He signal boosts interesting stuff on twitter and comments on things from time to time. He "Pokes his snout" into
- [Tales from the Tavern with MT Black](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-with-mt-black/) - Today we've got an interview with MT Black of MT Black Games! He can be found on Twitter and Facebook, and publishes a newsletter that has lots of great information! How did you get started playing/running TTRPGs? I got involved in the hobby as a kid in the early 80s. D&D was very much in
- [Game Lethality in Different Game Sessions](https://shadomain.com/game-lethality-in-different-game-sessions/) - By Jason Campbell A lot of TTRPG players and GMs prefer games which are more “gritty”, often meaning the chance of PCs dying is high, while others determined to tell their PC’s story are uncomfortable with character death unless it's acceptable to both GM and player. As a GM I fall somewhere in between but
- [Psychological Safety for GMs in TTRPGs](https://shadomain.com/psychological-safety-for-gms-in-ttrpgs/) - by GamerMomLuna The term “Psychological Safety” pops up in TTRPGs a lot and it’s important to take a look at what it is and why it’s important for discussions at your gaming tables. At its most basic level, psychological safety is defined as the belief that you won’t be punished or humiliated for speaking up
- [Tales From the Tavern - Matt Yancik](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-matt-yancik/) - It's time for another Tales From the Tavern mini-interview, today we talk with Matt Yancik (he/him) a teacher, GM and positive contributor to the TTRPG community.You can find Matt's videos here: https://www.youtube.com/@ManufacturedMythLegerdemain https://twitter.com/catwhowalks99 Let's see what Matt has to say! Do you prefer playing TTRPGs online or in person, and why?This is a tough question -
- [Tales from the Tavern - DM Crazy Eddie](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-dm-crazy-eddie/) - Wednesday means another Tales from the Tavern interview! Today we talk to DM Crazy Eddie. He runs the DND 4 Awesome Twitch channel, streaming both published and unpublished content. He has previously been a Convention DM and contributed to multiple module development. You can find him online at:https://www.twitch.tv/dnd4awesome https://discord.gg/6nKr9Xc2PJ, and less commonly you can find
- [Safety Tools at your TTRPG table](https://shadomain.com/safety-tools-at-your-ttrpg-table/) - TTRPG’s can sometimes deal with some intense issues and themes, such as racism, sexism, slavery, or even going so far as to deal with sexual assault. Thorough consideration should be done before broaching any potentially difficult topics. If tables do end up deciding to include it in game, there are some well-established safety tools that
- [From Afar Podcast](https://shadomain.com/from-afar-podcast/) - Today we highlight the From Afar Podcast, a 5e actual play Dungeons and Dragons podcast created by four distant friends! Join in on the fun as they whisk you away to far away lands, daring adventures, and mostly just friendly foibles and banter as they include you in a part of their lives that brings
- [Teos Abadia on RPG Creators and Social Media](https://shadomain.com/teos-abadia-on-rpg-creators-and-social-media/) - Today we highlight a video from Teos Abadia with some great advice for TTRPG creators about using social media.
- [Tales From the Tavern - Jack Kellum of Gods and Gamemasters](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-jack-kellum-of-gods-and-gamemasters/) - Today's Tales From the Tavern mini-interview features Jack Kellum (Of Gods and Gamemasters)He makes worlds. He builds gods, villains, and monsters for a variety of games. He runs games, and has for 41 years.You can find him at ofgodsandgamemasters.com,on Twitter at twitter.com/JackGogsbane or at Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/jackgogsbane , Tumbr at https://www.tumblr.com/blog/of-gods-and-gamemasters @Jackgiantkiller@dice.camp on Mastodonand on YouTube
- [Looking For Clues and Making It Up](https://shadomain.com/looking-for-clues-and-making-it-up/) - By Jason Campbell My regular TTRPG group is playing in the Ptolus setting, there are 5 players plus me as the GM. Here’s what happened in our latest session. Please let us know in the comments any advice you have, or stories from your own games. As many GMs have likely experienced, many times you
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Austin Ramsay - part two](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-austin-ramsay-part-two/) - Here's a transcription of an interview Jason Campbell and GamerMomLuna recorded on 12/12/2022 with Austin Ramsay of Austin Ramsay Games, author of Beam Saber, creator of CalazCon - a Beam Saber Mega Game Actual Play Interview has been transcribed and edited for clarity, content, and length. This is the second of two parts, with the
- [Tales from the Tavern with Seth Skorkowsky](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-with-seth-skorkowsky/) - The Tales from the Tavern you're familiar with is back! Sort of. Jason and GamerMomLuna had the opportunity to sit down and interview Seth Skorkowsky recently, and recorded it for everyone! The three talked TTRPGs, writing, and YouTube streaming tips! You can check out the YouTube video here, or if podcast is more your style,
- [RPG News- Kobold Press announces latest Kickstarter project](https://shadomain.com/rpg-news-kobold-press-announces-latest-kickstarter-project/) - Here's a press release about Kobold Press's latest crowdfunded effort that launches Tuesday, January 17, 2023 Kobold Press is excited to launch their next project: Deep Magic 2: Spellcaster's Emporium for 5th Edition Games, an arcane anthology where you can find new spells and new styles of magic, plus entirely new classes, downtime activities, familiars,
- [Tales From the Tavern Interview with Austin Ramsay - part one](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-interview-with-austin-ramsay-part-one/) - Here's a transcription of an interview Jason Campbell and GamerMomLuna recorded on 12/12/2022 with Austin Ramsay of Austin Ramsay Games, author of Beam Saber, creator of CalazCon - a Beam Saber Mega Game Actual Play Interview has been transcribed and edited for clarity, content, and length. This is the first of two parts, with the
- [FREE One Page Adventure - Revenge of the Ojeeyell](https://shadomain.com/free-one-page-adventure-revenge-of-the-ojeeyell/) - As a gift to the TTRPG community, here's a downloadable one page adventure, for use with the Cypher System, Fate or Call of Cthulhu. (If you have suggestions for other independent games to support, let us know.)This is offered free to the community, but if you'd like to help independent creators we suggest a donation
- [Teaching RPGs - Running for New, Younger Players](https://shadomain.com/teaching-rpgs-running-for-new-younger-players-2/) - by Jason Campbell and Steph Today's post is co-written with guest author Steph. Steph is a parent to an awesome kid, an engineer and professor, and a major TTRPG, Star Trek, Dr. Who, etc geek who loves making, writing about, and running games and stories for others. They run the TTRPGkids website, which is a free
- [Sam Comerford and the 19 player TTRPG Session](https://shadomain.com/sam-comerford-and-the-19-player-ttrpg-session/) - Hey GMs - so you think you've run some games with large groups? Well Sam Comerford of The Spontanium Show recently ran a game for 19 players! Yes, that's not a typo... NINETEEN! We interviewed Sam to find out how that went! Tell us how you came up with the concept for Spontanium. What is
- [Review - The Monsters Know What They're Doing](https://shadomain.com/review-the-monsters-know-what-theyre-doing/) - By Jason Campbell The Monsters Know What They’re Doing is a book by Keith Ammann which helps new DMs run monsters and experienced DMs increase the effectiveness of monster encounters. It is focused on Dungeons and Dragons 5e, although a thorough reading will increase a GM's effective use of opponents within any RPG. But let’s
- [Using Die Rolls to Build Story](https://shadomain.com/using-die-rolls-to-build-story/) - By Jason Campbell In my current 5e campaign there are 5 PCs, none of them dwarves. Don’t worry - it follows. For that matter, none of them were masons, miners, or anything of the like. The PCs were exploring an underground system of stone hallways, and one of the PCs, a Leonin (lion-folk) fighter/wizard, made
- [Lawful Great Adventures podcast](https://shadomain.com/lawful-great-adventures-podcast/) - Today we’d like to highlight another great #ttrpg podcast: Lawful Great Adventures! A Quest Actual Play podcast. Narrative, character-driven, occasionally sentimental. Follow four friends on their journey home. Check it out!
- [Reckless Attack podcast](https://shadomain.com/reckless-attack-podcast/) - Today we’d like to highlight another great #ttrpg podcast: Reckless attack podcast, a 5th Edition Dungeons and Dragons Actual Play podcast, is made up of a group of cheery, diverse, regular folks in Chicago who love the game and want to share theirs with you.Find out more at https://www.recklessattack.com/
- [Emergency Power podcast](https://shadomain.com/emergency-power-podcast/) - Today we’d like to highlight another great #ttrpg podcast: The Emergency Power podcast. What happens when you combine 50+ years of collective TTRPG and LARP experience? This show! A mostly wholesome, always exciting actual-play podcast set in the Starfinder universe. Featuring a homebrew adventure written by GM Adam Damas.Check it out here:
- [The Spontanium Show](https://shadomain.com/the-spontanium-show/) - Today we’d like to highlight another great #ttrpg podcast: The Spontanium Show, a weekly TTRPG show where neither the players nor the game master know what the setting/plot of the game is until we start to play! This show is heavily improvised, and the fun is drawn from how absolutely chaotic and wild the GM,
- [RPG World Building](https://shadomain.com/rpg-world-building/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. Today we highlight a "Drunkens and Dragons" video from Runehammer about world building. These are always entertaining and informative!
- [Creating D&D Encounters](https://shadomain.com/creating-dd-encounters/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. Today we highlight a video from Luke at The DM Lair discussing designing encounters.
- [The Boneclaw in Different Editions of D&D](https://shadomain.com/the-boneclaw-in-different-editions-of-dd/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. Today we highlight a video from Natural Ones about one of my favorite undead, the Boneclaw!
- [Mass Combat Options from SkullSplitter Dice](https://shadomain.com/mass-combat-options-from-skullsplitter-dice/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. Today we highlight a video from SkullSplitter Dice where Patrick discusses options for running Mass Combat.
- [B. Dave Walters Interviews Matt Mercer](https://shadomain.com/b-dave-walters-interviews-matt-mercer/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. Today we highlight a Demiplanar video where TV's B. Dave Walters talks with Critical Role's Matt Mercer. There's many thoughts about playing TTRPGs from these two veteran GMs.
- [Experience Points - What's the Risk?](https://shadomain.com/experience-points-whats-the-risk/) - by Jason Campbell One of the most critical tasks for a DM in D&D and similar adventure TTRPGs is to award experience. Whether you use experience points or a system based on milestones you’re going to evaluate how many challenges the PCs need to overcome to advance to the next level. Typically the amount of
- [New? Start Here!](https://shadomain.com/new-start-here/) - The Abbreviations TTRPG = Table Top Role-Playing Game (as opposed to video games or board games) RPG = Role-Playing Game (usually the same as TTRPG) D&D = Dungeons & Dragons, the most popular Role-Playing Game. What is a Role-Playing Game? A Role-Playing Game different from board games in a few ways. The most important way
- [Making Tokens](https://shadomain.com/making-tokens/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. Today we highlight a tool which GMs and Players who use online Virtual Table Tops might find useful. Check out the site:https://rolladvantage.com/tokenstamp/ where you can use your own graphics to quickly
- [Player Indecision in TTRPGs](https://shadomain.com/player-indecision-in-ttrpgs/) - By Jason Campbell In my D&D 5e campaign set in the Ptolus campaign world, the PCs recently explored a temple to a god of chance. Because of that, the encounters were based entirely on randomness. There were things that would trigger random monsters, spells and treasure. My players are all experienced in TTRPGs in general
- [Dice Populi Podcast](https://shadomain.com/dice-populi-podcast/) - Today we'd like to highlight another great #ttrpg podcast:Dice Populi is an D&D 5e Actual Play podcast available at https://www.dicepopuli.com/ Five people play Dungeons and Dragons with a twist: When one Dungeon Master finishes their adventure the next takes over, all within a single seafaring campaign called Dicey Waters.
- [Game Recap: Slayride - Christmas in D&D](https://shadomain.com/game-recap-slayride-christmas-in-dd/) - by Jason Campbell Note: today’s campaign diary is about two sessions I ran at a local game store with the one-shot Holiday adventure, Slayride for Dungeons and Dragons 5e. Slayride is inspired by classic TV Christmas specials. We published this adventure a couple of weeks ago. If you’d like to get a PDF copy of
- [New Gamemaster Month](https://shadomain.com/new-gamemaster-month/) - New Gamemaster Month is an effort by several TTRPG publishers to encourage and support those new to gamemastering to run their first game. It takes place throughout January with the idea that participants will have the skills and confidence to run their first game in February. Resources for the effort include: The website https://newgamemastermonth.com/ A
- [GM Tips - Bob on the Deck of Many Things](https://shadomain.com/gm-tips-bob-on-the-deck-of-many-things/) - Today we highlight a video from Bob Worldbuilder about the Deck of Many Things! Maybe... it doesn't completely break a game after all?
- [A look at PAX Unplugged 2022](https://shadomain.com/a-look-at-pax-unplugged-2022/) - The tabletop roleplaying community is full of incredible people - game designers, artists, players and GMs/DMs, and so many more. When we have the opportunity to get a lot of them together in one location, it’s sure to be a lot of fun! PAX Unplugged is a gaming convention that focuses solely on all kinds
- [RPG Tips - Role Play Chat](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-role-play-chat/) - Today we highlight Role Play Chat https://linktr.ee/role_play_chat Role-Play Chat is a biweekly tabletop RPG discussion podcast doling out tips, stories & advice. Check it out at the links above!
- [GM Tips - Matt Colville Towards Better Rewards](https://shadomain.com/gm-tips-matt-colville-towards-better-rewards/) - today we highlight a video from Matt Colville of MCDM. He discusses another kind of reward, beyond simple gold and magic items. It's definitely worth a listen!
- [RPG Tips - Monster of the Week](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-monster-of-the-week/) - Today we highlight Josiah aka Dungeon Dad's Monster of the Week series, where he dives into monsters from previous editions of D&D and Pathfinder. Here's one with a really different sort of monster with NO actions!
- [Pacing a Story Arc](https://shadomain.com/pacing-a-story-arc/) - by Jason Campbell I've been running a weekly Dungeons & Dragons 5e campaign in Monte Cook Games' Ptolus city setting since January of 2022. I have 5 players with PCs currently at level 8. A few weeks ago they delved into a dungeon they discovered beneath the Temple of the Ebon Hand, hunting for an
- [Pacing and Timing: One Shots Versus Long Form](https://shadomain.com/pacing-and-timing-one-shots-versus-long-form/) - Pacing: the art (or science) managing story beats to keep the fun flowing throughout the session. Timing involves the art of determining how long a planned game will take, or alternately managing the game to roughly end after a certain time period. I’ve played a lot of RPGs, but in all those years, learning pacing
- [Review - The Darkest House](https://shadomain.com/review-the-darkest-house/) - Note: No payment or incentives were received in exchange for this review. The Darkest House is a different sort of TTRPG product - it is an adventure as well as an entire game system. It’s available from Monte Cook Games as a printed hardcover book (296 pages) or as a desktop application for Mac or
- [Campaign Diaries - Blades in the Dark](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-blades-in-the-dark/) - Recently, the Shadomain Staff and some friends have been playing some Blades in the Dark by John Harper, published by Evil Hat. Here's a brief description of the game from the official web site: Blades in the Dark is a tabletop role-playing game about a crew of daring scoundrels seeking their fortunes on the haunted streets
- [Tales From the Tavern - Mat "Role Play Chat" Copelli](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-mat-role-play-chat-copelli/) - Welcome to another Tales From the Tavern mini-interview! Today we talk to Mat "Role Play Chat" Copelli (He/Him). Let's hear from Mat!Hi! I'm Mat. I'm a TTRPG podcaster, host and writer! I can be found hosting Role Play Chat, a TTRPG advice podcast, live every other week on all major podcasting platforms. You can also
- [GM Tips - Jesse Schell on  Game Design](https://shadomain.com/gm-tips-jesse-schell-on-game-design/) - Today we're highlighting a video discussion at @DiekuGames with Jesse Schell about Game Design, featuring theory and stories!
- [Tales From the Tavern - Dean M Lewis](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-dean-m-lewis/) - Hey it's time for another mini-interview at Tales From the Tavern. Today we talk with Dean M Lewis (he/him), co-founder of the Cypher Unlimited discord server and noted TTRPG author, GM and enthusiast. You can find their videos at https://www.youtube.com/@CypherUnlimitedOk, let's hear from Dean! Do you prefer GMing or Playing, and why?I'm a lifetime GM.
- [15 Fantastic Holiday Gift Ideas For TTRPG Gamers](https://shadomain.com/15-fantastic-holiday-gift-ideas-for-ttrpg-gamers/) - We’ve reached the time of year where everyone starts shopping for just the right holiday gift for the tabletop gamer in their life. We’ve looked at some of our own experiences with places we’ve ordered from, or recommendations from other gamers we know and trust, and we have some recommendations for you! TTRPG themed clothes,
- [TTRPG Games For an Audience](https://shadomain.com/ttrpg-games-for-an-audience/) - By GamerMomLuna There was recently something that came up on Critical Role (which, admittedly, I do not watch, but my co-writer Jason does) that really got me thinking: A lot of TTRPG content can be found as a podcast, a YouTube show, or played live on Twitch. Critical Role is perhaps the largest example of
- [I Ran a Game, and I Liked It!](https://shadomain.com/i-ran-a-game-and-i-liked-it/) - by GamerMomLuna Anyone who has ever heard me talk about GMing knows that I don’t GM. I tried GMing both a Dungeons and Dragons game, and the Dragon Age TTRPG for the first time pretty early on in my TTRPG experience. My players were mostly veteran players, and the one who wasn’t a longtime player
- [GM Screens - The Big Debate!](https://shadomain.com/gm-screens-the-big-debate/) - by Jason Campbell Yes, it’s time to discuss the elephant in the room - assuming said elephant was a few pieces of heavy cardboard. GM screens have been with us since at least the DM screen produced by TSR in 1979. Their use can be controversial with GMs arguing still over their pluses and minuses.
- [GM Tips - How DMs Can Help New Players Fall In Love With D&D](https://shadomain.com/gm-tips-how-dms-can-help-new-players-fall-in-love-with-dd/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Ginny Di has some advice on how GMs can help new players. This one’s
- [Splitting the Party in Ptolus](https://shadomain.com/splitting-the-party-in-ptolus/) - by Jason Campbell My players and I began a Dungeons & Dragons 5e campaign in January 2022 using the Ptolus setting from Monte Cook Games (available for 5e and for the Cypher System). In the latest session the characters investigated a temple which was the home of an evil cult. They were looking for a
- [Tales From the Tavern Wrap-Up](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-wrap-up/) - Lessons learned from three years of streaming by GamerMomLuna Tales from the Tavern, “the epic TTRPG stream where chat asks the questions,” ended a three year long run on October 30, 2022. “Tales,” as I have commonly referred to it, started streaming at the end of 2019, and ran successfully though it was on three
- [RPG Tips - Foreshadowing backstory with  Sam Riegel](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-foreshadowing-backstory-with-sam-riegel/) - Jay Martin discusses how Sam Riegel in Critical Role season 2 (spoilers in the video) foreshadowed his character Nott the Brave.
- [RPG Tips - Neil Peart on Persistence](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-neil-peart-on-persistence/) - "I Wasn't TALENTED... But I Was RELENTLESS!" - Neil Peart Neil Peart was the drummer and lyricist for the rock group Rush and often considered one of the best rock drummers of all time. He was quite introspective about his work and in this interview he describes how his relentless pursuit of creative success was
- [RPG Tips - Board Games for Kids](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-board-games-for-kids/) - Here's Dicebreaker with 7 great board games for kids aged 5 and up.
- [RPG Tips - Matt Yancik and Seth Skorkowsky](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-matt-yancik-and-seth-skorkowsky/) - Matt Yancik and Seth Skorkowsky discuss writing, GMing and Creating a TTRPG video series. This one is an in depth interview at 1 hour, 33 minutes.
- [Gm Tips - The Cost of Freelancing](https://shadomain.com/gm-tips-the-cost-of-freelancing/) - Today we'd like like to highlight a video from Teos Abadía that discusses the realities of being a freelancer in the TTRPG space.
- [Ptolus Meets the Darkest House](https://shadomain.com/ptolus-meets-the-darkest-house/) - by Jason Campbell The weekly D&D 5e campaign I DM began in January 2022 and at this point the characters are 7th level. We’re playing in the Ptolus setting (from Monte Cook Games, available for D&D 5e or the Cypher System.) As the last session fell on Halloween we decided to run a one session
- [It’s Not Meta-Gaming, It’s Just Gaming](https://shadomain.com/its-not-meta-gaming-its-just-gaming-part-one/) - First in a two-part series on meta-gaming by @TTBenjamin1, read part two here The term meta-gaming has expanded so far as to be essentially useless. I don’t want to dwell on definitions and semantics because that kind of discussion is exactly how we got here. I do want to kick off with an overview of
- [Working Around and With Meta-Gaming](https://shadomain.com/working-around-and-with-meta-gaming/) - Second in a series on meta-gaming by @TTBenjamin1 , read the first part here Here’s a fun phrase I like to throw around when this topic comes up: The characters know more about the world than the players. Think of all the things you know about the world you live in. Do it. Think of
- [Tales from the Tavern - Devon Chulick from StartPlaying](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-devon-chulick-from-startplaying/) - It's time for another Tales from the Tavern interview with Devon Chulick! Devon is the cofounder of StartPlaying, the largest platform for finding tabletop games, groups and Game Masters. They feature everything from Dungeons & Dragons, Blades in the Dark, Call of Cthulhu, Monster of the Week, Alice is Missing, Pathfinder, and more! He's also
- [Tales from the Tavern - Elly Runnals](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-elly-runnals/) - It's our first Tales from the Tavern interview of the new year, so we're kicking off 2023 with an interview with Elly Runnals. Elly stays busy with lots of writing in the TTRPG space, so let's hear more about what she's up to! She can be found on Twitter at TTRPElly! What Elly does: In
- [Blades in The Dark - Session Zero](https://shadomain.com/blades-in-the-dark-session-zero/) - by Jason Campbell I started a Blades in the Dark campaign this week. Blades in the Dark is a TTRPG by John Harper and published by Evil Hat Productions. I’ve played Blades in the Dark a bit but this was my first time as GM. All three players were experienced in RPGs but they were
- [Campaign Diaries - Ptolus Campaign update](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-ptolus-campaign-update/) - by Jason Campbell My players and I began a Dungeons & Dragons 5e campaign in January 2022 using the Ptolus setting from Monte Cook Games (available for 5e and for the Cypher System.). The setting is an enormous fantastic city which was originally the setting for Monte Cook’s home game. The hardcover version comes in
- [GM Tips - Running Games at Conventions](https://shadomain.com/gm-tips-running-games-at-conventions/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com This video from Cypher Unlimited is a great discussion with lots of tips for
- [RPG Tips - Sam Riegel and Liam O'Brien Discussion Pre-Critical Role](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-sam-riegel-and-liam-obrien-discussion-pre-critical-role/) - In this series we share helpful links for TTRPG Players. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Sam Reigel and Liam O’Brien’s chat after their first D&D Pathfinder* game with
- [Campaign Diaries - A One-Shot Run Twice!](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-a-one-shot-run-twice/) - by Jason Campbell Last week I ran a D&D 5e one-shot at a friendly local game shop, "drop-in" style so I don't know who the players would be. I thought it'd be fun to write about how the two groups of players handled the situations. Each session was limited to 3 hours so some of
- [Post O' The Week - Critical Hit Cookies Review](https://shadomain.com/post-o-the-week-critical-hit-cookies-review/) - Have you ever found yourself needing a sweet treat to feed your adventuring party? Or maybe something tasty to lift your spirits after a particularly challenging battle during a session? Critical Hit Cookies may have just what you’re looking for. Critical Hit Cookies was born out of a love of both gaming and baking, and
- [GM Tips - Worldbuilding with Brandon Sanderson](https://shadomain.com/gm-tips-worldbuilding-with-brandon-sanderson/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com This one is a video of a lecture that professional fantasy writer Brandon Sanderson
- [Tales from the Tavern - Zach Katz](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-zach-katz/) - It's time for another Tales from the Tavern interview with Zach Katz (any pronouns)! Zach is a podcaster, writer, and streamer, and runs the Fantasize Me Podcast! You can find Zach on Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/fantasizemepod and on Twitch at https://www.twitch.tv/fantasizemepod Let's see what Zach has to say about their TTRPG experiences! What is your favorite
- [Campaign Diaries - An Ethical Dilemma](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-an-ethical-dilemma/) - by Jason Campbell Today I wanted to tell a story from my previous D&D 5e campaign, Shadomain Luna. Oh yes, Shadomain is the name of my home-brewed campaign world, but the history of that is a tale for another day. Shadomain Luna followed five adventurers from 1st through 17th levels. One of the characters in
- [We Should Pay for Art… But Not ALL Art?](https://shadomain.com/we-should-pay-for-art-but-not-all-art/) - by Jason Campbell [Disclaimer: In my day job I am a font designer, although I’m not directly connected to the people or works cited] There’s been quite a lot of discussion recently in the TTRPG space about the use of AI artwork (art created by computer programs, most of which have been “trained” by analyzing
- [Tales From the Tavern - Bruce R. Cordell](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-bruce-r-cordell/) - It's Wednesday so it's time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we'll hear from Bruce R. Cordell. What does he do? "I write games and novels. More games than novels these days, given that my day job is as a senior designer at Monte Cook Games. For a much more
- [Campaign Diaries - Sci-Fi Campaign part one](https://shadomain.com/campaign-diaries-sci-fi-campaign-part-one/) - by Jason Campbell The past few weeks we've been developing the "bones" for a sci-fi campaign. Today we're going to look at the beginning of this campaign, and in following weeks we'll be touching on how the sessions go, from a GM and players' perspective. Genre: This game will be science fiction, somewhere in between
- [House Rules - Playing TTRPG games your way](https://shadomain.com/house-rules-playing-ttrpg-games-your-way/) - Using “house rules” in a TTRPG is meant to be a way to make a game more fun for everyone at the table. They should be agreed on by the players and the GM so that everyone is aware that there’s been a change to the way the game is written, and hopefully everyone is in agreement with it.
- [Fighting the Brain Goblins - Impostor Syndrome Strikes Again!](https://shadomain.com/fighting-the-brain-goblins-impostor-syndrome-strikes-again/) - By GamerMomLuna How do you fight the brain goblins that tell you you’re not good enough to make content? How do you convince yourself to keep going when it feels like you’re not doing anything worthwhile? This is such a complicated thing that many people in the TTRPG space deal with. Imposter syndrome is not
- [Tales From the Tavern - Donald the Solo Rpg Guy](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-donald-the-solo-rpg-guy/) - It’s Wednesday so it’s time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we’ll hear from Donald the Solo Rpg Guy, known for Solo RPG gaming. You can find Donald in his Facebook group or at his YouTube channel. Let’s hear what Donald has to share! What is your favorite TTRPG? Well, I
- [Tales From the Tavern - Lauren Hottinger](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-lauren-hottinger/) - It’s Wednesday so it’s time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we’ll hear from Lauren Hottinger (@HottingerLauren / Laurbarian). She's currently working as a cartographer with Lostlorn Games creating fantasy maps for several of their upcoming projects. She's also a commission artist in a variety of different mediums, but mainly painting,
- [RPG Tips - Wizards' Spelljammer 5e Fail](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-wizards-spelljammer-5e-fail/) - In this series we share helpful links for TTRPG Players. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Maitreyi Plays Games gives a good review of the "Hadozee controversy" and some
- [RPG Tips - What To Do If Your DM Sucks!](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-what-to-do-if-your-dm-sucks/) - In this series we share helpful links for TTRPG Players. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Professor Dungeon Master discusses what to do if your DM sucks! A fun
- [RPG Tips - Your DM Wants You to Keep Track of Your Character](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-your-dm-wants-you-to-keep-track-of-your-character/) - In this series we share helpful links for TTRPG Players. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Ginny Di gives advice on keeping track of your character in a TTRPG.
- [RPG Tips - D&D Player Tips with Matt Mercer](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-dd-player-tips-with-matt-mercer/) - In this series we share helpful links for TTRPG Players. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Matt Mercer and Todd Kenrick discuss player tips for TTRPGs. Comes in at
- [RPG Tips - What is the D&D Old School Renaissance?](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-what-is-the-dd-old-school-renaissance/) - In this series we share helpful links for TTRPG Players. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Ben from Questing Beast discusses the OSR (Old School Renaissance), you have probably
- [RPG Tips - The Vecna Conspiracy of D&D 5.5e](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-the-vecna-conspiracy-of-dd-5-5e/) - In this series we share helpful links for TTRPG Players. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Bob Worldbuilder talks about Vecna and the recent swell of his popularity. At
- [RPG Tips - How to Give Your D&D Character a Personality](https://shadomain.com/rpg-tips-how-to-give-your-dd-character-a-personality/) - In this series we share helpful links for TTRPG Players. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Ginny Di gives some advice on creating interesting personalities for your characters. Comes
- [GM Tips -  5 Dungeon Master Lessons](https://shadomain.com/gm-links/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com. Today, Ginny Di lists 5 things they’ve learned from being a GM that will
- [GM Tips - 10 steps to Prepare Your First D&D Game](https://shadomain.com/gm-tips-10-steps-to-prepare-your-first-dd-game/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com This is a good list of steps for new GMs from DM Lair’s Luke
- [GM Tips -Let's Talk About THAT Guy](https://shadomain.com/gm-links-lets-talk-about-that-guy/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Today, Professor Dungeon Master talks about “that guy”, the player all GMs dislike and
- [GM Tips - What Your DMing Style Says About You](https://shadomain.com/gm-tips/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com In this video, Jay discusses how to lean into your strengths as a GM.
- [GM Tips - A Day in the Life of a Professional TTRPG Writer](https://shadomain.com/gm-tips-a-day-in-the-life-of-a-professional-ttrpg-writer/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Lynne Hardy talks about the life of a TTRPG writer and what the job
- [GM Tips - 9 Things "Pro" DMs Do That You Shouldn't](https://shadomain.com/gm-tips-9-things-pro-dms-do-that-you-shouldnt/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Luke Hart lists things that many “Pro DMs” do that not every DM needs
- [GM Tips - The Sacred and the Profane](https://shadomain.com/gm-tips-the-sacred-and-the-profane/) - In this series we share helpful links for GMs. If you have any suggestions for future posts, you can comment below or tweet us. The views expressed in these videos are those of the video's author, not necessarily those of shadomain.com Surprise - Here’s a blog post, not a video! Monte Cook talks about different
- [Tales from the Tavern - Joel Moreno](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-joel-moreno/) - It's Wednesday so it's time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we'll hear from Joel Moreno, TTRPG designer, storyteller, and Producer at Take Your Role You can find them at their personal Twitter at https://twitter.com/zXShadowAceXz, or the Take Your Role official Twitter at https://twitter.com/TakeYourRole. Let's see what Joel has to
- [Tales from the Tavern - Homie & The Dude](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-homie-the-dude/) - It's Wednesday, which means it's time for another interview! This week, we talked with Homie and The Dude, also known as Bodhi (the son) and Tom (the dad). Homie and The Dude are a father and son TTRPG and MMA Podcast and creators of DnD supplements. They pride themselves in creating stuff they love to
- [Cooperative Campaign Creation – Sci-Fi, Part Two](https://shadomain.com/cooperative-campaign-creation-sci-fi-part-two/) - By Jason Campbell... and You! In our cooperative campaign creation series, we will create a campaign setting together step by step. I'll propose some options and ideas, and you propose your own ideas in the comments! In this series we're working on a homebrew sci-fi campaign. In this edition we continue preparing for an upcoming
- [Tales from the Tavern - Interview with Ty Burrus](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-ty-burrus/) - It’s Wednesday so it’s time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we’ll hear from Ty Burrus; Game designer, Artist, Producer and content creator. He was the creator and did all artwork for “Aether and Steamworks”, a full TTRPG, as well as many smaller one-shot engines. You can find Ty at @lotevenstar on Twitter and YouTube, @rfchaos on Twitch Let’s hear what Ty has to share!
- [Tales From the Tavern - Anthony Fernandez (Spiggs18)](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-anthony-fernandez-spiggs18/) - It's Wednesday so it's time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we'll hear from Anthony Fernandez; Maintenance director for a Military Museum and one of the founders of the Cypher Unlimited discord channel. You can find him at https://www.youtube.com/c/CypherUnlimited https://www.facebook.com/groups/CypherUnlimited https://discord.gg/jf9z9b4 (Cypher Unlimited discord) https://www.twitch.tv/cypherunlimitedlive/ Let's get started!
- [Tales From the Tavern -  Ancient Albatross](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-ancient-albatross/) - It's Wednesday so it's time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we'll hear from Ancient Albatross - Retail Drone and one of the creators of the Cypher Unlimited discord community. You can find him at https://www.youtube.com/cypherunlimitedor https://twitch.tv/cypherunlimitedlive or https://discord.gg/bGJ5ev6 or https://twitter.com/AncientBatross Let's get started! Do you prefer playing TTRPGs online
- [Tales from the Tavern - Kyle](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-kyle/) - It's Wednesday so it's time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we'll hear from Kyle (also known as @kyleexpress on Twitter!) What does he do? Hype Awesome People and all the things they do! With a side of Pro DMing. You can find him @kyleexpress on all social media! Do
- [Tales From the Tavern - Christopher Robin Negelein from Ganza Gaming](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-christopher-robin-negelein-from-ganza-gaming/) - It's Wednesday so it's time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we'll hear from Christopher Robin Negelein from Ganza Gaming. What does he do? Part time Game Writer and Graphic Designer, pretty much a one-person ttrpg making outfit. I’m one of the invited designers to start Cypher System Open License
- [Tales from the Tavern – Karee of Critical Hit Cookies](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-karee-of-critical-hit-cookies/) - It’s Wednesday so it’s time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we’ll hear from Karee of Critical Hit Cookies! What does she do? Karee created an online cookie company for gamers. She's also a participant in the Horizons Unknown stream, a Horizons of the Vast playthrough and on True Crit, an
- [Tales from the Tavern - Matt Joro | DungeonGlitch](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-matt-joro-dungeonglitch/) - It's Wednesday so it's time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we'll hear from Matt Joro | DungeonGlitch. What does he do? Artist, writer, actor, creator, consultant. I own Gemmed Firefly - a nerdy / meme merch shop. I also make music as DungeonGlitch, available everywhere music is streamed. I
- [Tales From the Tavern - Qedhup](https://shadomain.com/tales-from-the-tavern-qedhup/) - It's Wednesday so it's time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we'll hear from Arcus Masmeyer aka Qedhup, noted self described Coffee Addict. You can find them at youtube.com/qedhup , twitter.com/qedhup , pretty much any social media just search for Qedhup. Let's get going! What is your favorite TTRPG? My
- [Tales From the Tavern - Sam Comerford](https://shadomain.com/rpg-views-sam-comerford/) - It's Wednesday so it's time for another interview with a member of the TTRPG community! Today we'll hear from Sam Comerford; college student, professional DM and showrunner of Spontanium. You can find him at https://twitch.tv/spontaniumshow and https://twitter.com/RRollplaying Let's get started! What is your favorite TTRPG? I really enjoy 5e, but I’m not sure I’d call
- [Cooperative Campaign Creation - Sci-Fi, Part One](https://shadomain.com/cooperative-campaign-creation-sci-fi-part-one/) - By Jason Campbell - And You! In our cooperative campaign creation series, we will create a campaign setting together step by step. I'll propose some options and ideas, and you propose your own ideas in the comments! In this series we're working on a homebrew sci-fi campaign. In this edition we begin preparing for an
- [One-Shot Pacing - A Player Perspective](https://shadomain.com/one-shot-pacing-a-player-perspective/) - by GamerMomLuna There is a lot of good information out there about pacing games for GMs. A lot of it has to do with pacing in terms of telling the story you want to tell, and directing players in a way that still provides player agency. A general rule to follow is to assume that
- [A New Way of Looking at "Good" Scores](https://shadomain.com/a-new-way-of-looking-at-good-scores/) - By Jason Campbell All RPG players understand what’s meant by the term “a good ability score.” In Dungeons and Dragons Fifth edition for example, the term refers to ability scores of 12 or higher, because those scores will give you a modification to rolls like saves and skill checks. This is commonly understood but only
- [Participate in the community you’re in](https://shadomain.com/participate-in-the-community-youre-in/) - GamerMomLuna When you’re getting ready to launch your first stream or podcast, get into the online TTRPG community before you launch. Twitter has an extremely large TTRPG community for interacting, meeting folks, and figuring out all the circles. Get to know people before you start pitching your show to anyone and everyone. Once you get
- [Don’t Take On More Than You Can Handle](https://shadomain.com/dont-take-on-more-than-you-can-handle/) - by GamerMomLuna If you get a taste of TTRPG success it’s so easy to get pulled in a lot of directions. Maybe you want to try your hand at writing a supplement, or a system, or joining other games, charity events, and one-shots. You may want to create a Patreon and monetize your stream or
- [So You Want to Stream a TTRPG?](https://shadomain.com/so-you-want-to-stream-a-ttrpg/) - by Gamer Mom Luna Streaming and podcasting is a fun way to share your TTRPG adventures with the wider world, and meet some new people along the way. But there’s a lot more involved than just turning on the camera and rolling the dice. There are some important decisions and considerations to take into account
- [Are you playing a game or producing a show?](https://shadomain.com/are-you-playing-a-game-or-producing-a-show/) - by Gamer Mom Luna You’ve decided to start sharing your content with the larger TTRPG community. Awesome! People are always looking for new content. There are important things to keep in mind about how you behave at the table. The minute you begin sharing it with the world, you’re no longer just playing a game,
- [Ask Yourself Why?](https://shadomain.com/ask-yourself-why/) - Why? That’s a great question. More than just an annoying comment from a player, “why” is a great tool that a GM can use to create a strong story and setting for your campaign. Let’s start with a small piece – just an encounter and then we’ll use this technique continuing outwards. GM: “you traverse
- [Dragon Magazine in the Early 80s](https://shadomain.com/dragon-magazine-in-the-early-80s/) - In the early 1980s when we were playing AD&D (first edition) beyond the core books there was no better guide than Dragon magazine. Published by TSR, it featured columns by Gary Gygax, Ed Greenwood and other luminaries of Dungeons & Dragons. I encountered my first issue, which was already #58 in early 1982 at a
- [Tips for Beginning GMs](https://shadomain.com/tips-for-beginning-gms/) - Based on the feedback I’ve seen, being a new Dungeon Master is one of the most intimidating things you can do. But it doesn’t really need to be that way. Here’s some of the basics that will help you DM your first adventure. Buy an adventure for beginning DMs and players. I LOVE writing my
- [Starting at Third Level?](https://shadomain.com/starting-at-third-level/) - When beginning a new campaign in 5e, I often hear DMs and players suggest it’s best to start the characters at 3rd level. I suggest a different path: begin at 1st level, but let the characters advance to 3rd level quickly. This assumes you’re using milestone levelling, which is my personal preference. Also note that
- [Teaching RPGs - Running for New, Younger Players](https://shadomain.com/teaching-rpgs-running-for-new-younger-players/) - If you’re the game master in any role-playing game, you understand your role of managing the game story and mechanics. But when you’re running a game for new younger players you have multiple jobs: you are the game master and also a teacher. The teacher role means that you are explaining the game and how
- [Empowering by Encouraging Player Campaign Contributions](https://shadomain.com/empowering-by-encouraging-player-campaign-contributions/) - When I began playing RPGs in the 80s as a teenager our concept of the game was similar to going to an amusement park – The GM built a roller coaster and the players jumped on the ride. The modern era of RPGs requires a different metaphor: the GM and players are assembling a jigsaw
- [Teaching RPGs - Explaining the Rules of D&D 5e](https://shadomain.com/teaching-rpgs-explaining-the-rules-of-dd-5e/) - When I was new to the game back in the dark ages long ago we had the rule books and we slogged through them to learn the game dealing with whatever mistakes we made (and there were soooo many) along the way. This was fun and we eventually figured everything out, but this isn’t the
- [HINT](https://shadomain.com/hint/) - Hint is a one-shot adventure for Monte Cook Games’ Cypher System Revised game system. It’s available (as “pay what you want”) at Drive-ThruRPG. If you’re not familiar with the Cypher System you can find it and some free resources here. Hint is a classic detective game (inspired by the board game Clue) which you can
- [Role Playing Tips - Intelligence vs. Humanoid Intelligence](https://shadomain.com/role-playing-tips-intelligence-vs-humanoid-intelligence/) - When role playing creatures, the question of how to interpret intelligence scores becomes important. There are often standards about minimum scores to be able to speak or to read. What’s important to understand is that these scores are relative to humanoid intelligence. You shouldn’t role play low intelligence creatures as so uninformed that they can’t
- [Using Other Writing Styles for RPG Creation](https://shadomain.com/using-other-writing-styles-for-rpg-creation/) - by Jason Campbell I am a RPG creator which recently has taken up most of my available creative time, but I’ve also written novels, short stories and comic strips and books. Until recently I thought of those disciplines as separate things, “never the twain shall meet.” That was until I had the revelation that the
- [Beyond the Backstory](https://shadomain.com/beyond-the-backstory/) - by Jason Campbell In many TTRPG circles a long or intricate backstory is equated with quality role playing. Many role players feel it is essential as a basis for knowing how any character would act in a given situation. This is true and an established backstory (no matter the length) can be an invaluable tool
- [Three Hour Tour to the Island of the Lost](https://shadomain.com/three-hour-tour-to-the-island-of-the-lost/) - Three Hour Tour to the Island of the Lost When six passengers on a small sight-seeing boat get marooned on an island of lost dinosaurs and lizard people they must use all of their wits and skills to survive and escape! This ain’t your parents’ sitcom… Three Hour Tour to the Island of the Lost
- [Your Favorite Flavor - Tailoring Spells and More in Your Games](https://shadomain.com/your-favorite-flavor-tailoring-spells-and-more-in-your-games/) - “Where’s Ice Ball?” your player asks frustratedly as they look over third level spells for their Sorcerer from the Arctic regions. And maybe it’s a pretty good question. During your session zero it’s great to see players excited over their backstory, and it’s fun to tie that into your campaign world. But why shouldn’t it
- [Session Negative One](https://shadomain.com/session-negative-one/) - If you’ve been GMing for any amount of time or if you’ve watched a lot of “How to GM” videos you’ve heard the advice that you should run a “Session Zero” before the start of a new campaign. A Session Zero is a preparatory session where the players make characters and discuss and agree on

## Pages

- [About Shadomain](https://shadomain.com/about-shadomain/) - Shadomain is a blog about TTRPGs covering playing, game mastering, creation and streaming. Contributors Jason Campbell, Owner & Lead Developer (he/him) is a graphic artist, TTRPG creator and forever GM. He began playing TTRPGs in the 80s and has run games in many different game systems online, in stores and at conventions. Credits:Author of articles
- [Six-Gun Doomsday](https://shadomain.com/six-gun-doomsday/) - Six-Gun Doomsday is a ttrpg adventure and setting about survival after a gothic horror apocalypse set in the weird west of an alternate Earth ten years after the end of the U.S. Civil War. It uses rules based on Monte Cook Games’ Cypher System. We ran a successful Backerkit campaign in the summer of 2025
- [Shadomain Studio](https://shadomain.com/shadomain-studio/) - Shadomain Studios is the part of Shadomain dedicated to helping other designers and writers succeed in project creation. Our staff has degrees in visual design and illustration, work experience in management and project management, experience in game design, editing, proofreading, publishing and crowdfunding. If you need any help getting your game finished, let us know
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- [What We Do At Shadomain](https://shadomain.com/what-we-do/) - Our Shop - Choose TTRPG downloads, many of them FREE! About Us - All about our contributors and how to contact them Sign up For Our Email Newsletter! Our RSS Feed - Click to link to the feed Want to Be in a Featured Interview? Click Here to use our easy form, or Email for
- [TTRPG Forum](https://shadomain.com/forum/)
- [Please Complete the Tales From the Tavern Interview](https://shadomain.com/interview/) - Tales From the Tavern mini-interviews are text based interviews with people from the TTRPG world letting us know who they are. A new mini-interview is published every Wednesday. Just answer the questions below and your answers will be published as an upcoming mini-interview!
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- [Hint and More - Print and PDF Bundle](https://shadomain.com/product/hint-and-more-limited-time-print-and-pdf-bundle/) - a bundle of several of our most popular items
- [Hint for Brindlewood Bay](https://shadomain.com/product/hint-for-brindlewood-bay/) - Hint is a one-shot mystery adventure inspired by classic murder mystery board games. It’s played using the Brindlewood Bay role playing game rules (by Jason Cordova, published by The Gauntlet). The Murder Mavens have been invited to a secret playtest of Hint - a soon to be released murder mystery board game based on the Gold Crown Mysteries book series. The
- [Hint RPG](https://shadomain.com/product/hint-rpg/) - Hint uses an open mystery system - no one, including the game master, knows “who done it” until the final die roll. Play as pre-generated characters such as or create your own character using the simple character creation rules. Hint is a detective game using a simplified version of the Cypher System role playing game
- [Heart of the Mountain - Cypher System Creature](https://shadomain.com/product/heart-of-the-mountain-cypher-npc/) - NEW Creature for the Cypher System The Heart of the Mountain is a creature from folk horror, the spirit of a mountain which has seen excessive horrific tragedies over many years. Its form is difficult to perceive, as it initially appears as if the walls of the mountain have come alive, attacking with claws of lightning. When the Heart of the Mountain becomes intensely angered it becomes a giant made of rock and earth, able to move as a large humanoid.
- [NPC - Alphonso Verymuch](https://shadomain.com/product/npc-alphonso-verymuch/) - An NPC for fantasy TTRPGs, including stats for 5e based games.
- [NPC - Abe Phloxtrotter](https://shadomain.com/product/npc-abe-phloxtrotter/) - Abe Phloxtrotter is an NPC for your 5e based ttrpg, a halfling warlock. Abe Phloxtrotter is a lightfoot halfling. His full name is Abrahim but he much prefers the simpler “Abe”. He is 125 years old, quite elderly for a halfling. He stands 2’ 10” tall and his previously brown hair is mostly gray now.
- [One Page Game: Magical Musical Mystery Mess](https://shadomain.com/product/one-page-game-magical-musical-mystery-mess/) - Magical Musical Mystery Mess is a narrative role playing game that can be played without dice with just pens, paper and imagination. It’s best played with 3-6 players, where one player takes the role of the Director (similar to a rpg game master) and the others take the roles of Actors (similar to rpg players)
- [Nanette (5e NPC Monk)](https://shadomain.com/product/nanette-5e-npc-monk/) - Nanette is an NPC you can use in any 5e based ttrpg. Nanette is a human monk. She has long, grayish white hair that she wears pulled back in a low, loose bun most days. She stands approximately 5’2” and is about 70 years old. She appears to be in excellent health, and has not
- [Slayride - Complete Package](https://shadomain.com/product/slayride-complete-package/) - Slayride - Santa’s Escape from the Land of the Ice Golem On Christmas Eve Santa Claus is out delivering toys when he is attacked by the evil Jack Frost and sent through a portal to a fantastic world of magic and monsters. Only your heroes can help him find another portal so he can return to
- [Horrors of Pinocchio](https://shadomain.com/product/horrors-of-pinocchio/) - The Horrors of Pinocchio is a collection of short adventures for ANY tabletop roleplaying game at many different levels/tiers, spanning 5 different genres: cyberpunk/post-apocalyptic, fantasy, gothic/steampunk, modern, and sci-fi. Each adventure features Pinocchio as the major adversary and his abilities are described to use in any ttrpg. Stat blocks are provided for Pinocchio and all
- [Three Hour Tour to the Island of the Lost](https://shadomain.com/product/three-hour-tour-to-the-island-of-the-lost/) - When six passengers on a small sight-seeing boat get marooned on an island of lost dinosaurs and lizard people they must use all of their wits and skills to survive and escape! This ain’t your parents’ sitcom… Three Hour Tour to the Island of the Lost is a “one-shot” role playing adventure designed to be
- [How to RPG](https://shadomain.com/product/how-to-rpg/) - The purpose of How to RPG is to explain in simple language what a tabletop role playing game is and how to start playing. This advice is written for people new to role playing games - for those who have heard of TTRPGs and might want to play them, but don’t really know what it’s

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