Dungeon Master of None

As part of our quest to steal advice from every RPG ever published, DMs Rob and Matt discuss Dungeon World by Sage LaTorra and Adam Koebel. Dungeon World has a great description of how RPGs work and some excellent tips you can use in games run in any system. Stay tuned for the mailbag and the return of "Real or Woe!"     Letters: Jason asks: "Can I get a preview copy of the Actual Prep adventure ?...

Remember Pathfinder? It's back, in pog form! DMs Matt and Rob review the brand new 2nd edition rules of the Pathfinder Role-Playing Game.    Music: Pac Div - Roll the Dice Dua Lipa - New Rules Roxy Music - Editions of You 

Technology. What is it? Dungeon Masters Rob and Matt discuss how to think about and deploy technology in your own campaign worlds. Then, it's the firearms debate to end all firearms debates.    Letters: Gerard writes - "Are the DMoNs fans of Baldur's Gate?" John writes - "Here's a great way to present the confusing one-spell-a-round rule to new players!"   Don't forget to call in to the  DUNGEON M...

DMs Matt and Rob discuss the basics of what a Dungeon Master is and what a Dungeon Master does. Today, we review the DM advice presented in the 5e D&D Essentials Kit. But first, a game of "Weal or Woe," in which, Rob has to guess whether the RPG product is real or fake!  Matt and Rob discuss the roles presented in the Essentials Kit: referee, storyteller, and role-player. They break down the core...

Welcome to our first Dungeon Master Book Club ! DMs Matt and Rob discuss Marlon James'  Black Leopard, Red Wolf . Listen in for some great inspirational storytelling and ideas for monsters, NPCs, and fantastical magic!   Links: Black Leopard, Red Wolf  by Marlon James   Letters: Dan writes: You forgot about Earthsea's sexual peaches! Michael writes: I love the Genesys system. Do you have tips for...

Special guest Andy is back to talk about the first Dungeons and Dragons campaign setting: Greyhawk! We delve into the history of Greyhawk's design, discuss what makes Oerth unique, and share our favorite things for you to pilfer from Flanaess for your own campaign worlds.    Links: Anna B. Meyer's Greyhawk Cartography Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil by Monte Cook  David Howery's adventures...

DM Matt goes solo! He walks you through his process of writing an adventure in under an hour. Inspired by the image below and  Tremors , Matt creates a village and monster for you to steal! 

DMs Rob and Matt take a look at the Wizards of the Coast and Penny Arcade crossover hardcover for 5th edition Dungeons and Dragons. TL;DL Jerry Holkins is the Andy Borowitz of fantasy comedy writing.    Music: Pac Div - Roll the Dice Lana Del Ray, Club Clique - Video Games (Remix)

It's a Mailbag of Holding! Send us your letters at dmofnone@gmail.com and voicemails at (774) 203-4629! Here we go!  Letters: Bryan writes: Earthsea is great! The Sword of Truth does not depict BDSM and it also sucks.  Rob writes: Gnomes in SPAAACE! Gnomes should be an evil GnomeCorp with a Blue/Orange morality! Evan writes: What is the rule that prevents you from casting more than one spell a tur...

Are there gnomes on the sun? DMs Matt and Rob discuss strategies for incorporating the standard Dungeons and Dragons species into your campaign worlds.   Music: Pac Div - Roll the Dice Brad Neely - Cat People

Matt and Rob sit down and discuss the new nautical WotC adventure book, Ghosts of Saltmarsh! There's a lot of cool stuff here, so we only spend like a third of the episode griping about things we thought could be better. Spoiler-free until 21:55. Rob is sorry about his squeaky mouse wheel.

DMs Matt and Rob whip up some new monsters for you to steal for your campaign.  The Rokrubai , fey with a detachable heads Arcanomorphs , an  Aliens inspired soul-stealing aberration The Fisherman's Whale , a big friendly magical Cetacean  Monster Homebrew Link   Links: The Celestial Job  The Advanced Artificer The Hangover by Kurtis J. Wiebe and Owen Gieni Matt's Psimple Psionics   Letters : Mich...

DMs Matt and Rob discuss the ending of  Game of Thrones and what to steal (and what not to steal) for your RPG inspiration file. The maesters did King's Landing 9/11. Whew, glad that's done. How about a nice game of  cyvasse? SPOILER WARNING for  Game of Thrones  and  A Song of Ice and Fire  start at 06:00.  Link: The Celestial Job   Music:  Pac Div - Roll the Dice Velvet Underground - Oh! Sweet N...

DMs Matt and Rob talk about the Dungeons and Dragons news of the week: elf divorce , shameless plagiarism , and the most popular D&D subclasses . WARNING: SPOILERS for Game of Thrones Season 8 start at 25:00. Then, your DMs of None discuss how to use dragons in your games and throw together some dragon encounters for you to steal.    Music: Pac Div - Roll the Dice Limahl - Never Ending Story

Dungeon Masters Matt and Rob discuss how to use war in your adventures. Rob rants about the importance of a Cure Dysentery  spell. Plus, the answers to some of your letters!   Recommendations: The Pursuit of Power,  William H. McNeill Forever War,  Joe Haldeman The Forever War,  Dexter Filkins    Music: Pac Div - Roll the Dice Donovan - The War Drags On Complicated - Avril Lavigne

Hello friends! Today we celebrate our first year of Dungeon Master of None with some of our best moments, advice, and jokes. Please share this episode with your friends and community!    Episodes: Episode 4: I'm Not Here to Make Friends Episode 43: DMing 201 Episode 65: Medieval Times w/ Special Guest Paul Sturtevant Episode 67: Vancian Podcasting Episode 25: PbtA, theme, and worldbuilding with sp...

DM Rob gives some Dungeon Mastering tips as he reflects on the end of his three-year-long Dungeons and Dragons campaign. Take what Rob has learned and apply it to your game! And as the poet said, "Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end." Planning throughout the campaign [05:00] Building party cohesion [13:00] Dealing with indecision [18:00] Matt's 3 Tiers of Intra-Party Talk [22...

Nice! Are elves tall? The definition of "Matt's Law of Forgotten RP Servers." Do you allow or encourage romantic and sexy situations in your game?  Your DMs of None discuss building plot hooks big and small into your campaign settings.    Links: The X-Card by John Stavropoulos The Advanced Artificer on the DMs Guild     Music: Pac Div - Roll the Dice Silver - Wham Bam Shang-A-Lang

Special guest Dungeon Master Alex Clippinger is here with wise words and sage advice for all aspiring DMs. Ever thought about publishing that adventure, monster, or magic item on the Dungeon Masters Guild? This is the episode for you!  Check out Alex's cool RPG stuff over at the DMsGuild! And follow Alex on Twitter! Music: Roll the Dice - Pac Div 9 to 5 - Dolly Parton Grinding All My Life - Nipsey...

DMs Rob and Matt have completed their first (self-) published Dungeons and Dragons book:  The Advanced Artificer . Your DMs of None discuss the process of designing and publishing the thing for the Dungeon Masters Guild in the hopes that our conversation will inspire you to publish that thing you've always been meaning to finish.  Meanwhile, why don't you buy our book? It is only two bucks, has a...

The Mailbag of Holding (Type III) returns! DMs Rob and Matt answer your questions on Dungeon Mastering and more.   Music: Pac Div - Roll the Dice Jurassic 5 - Freedom Cake - Wheels

Howdy y'all, it's the Kickstarter roundup! Yeehaw! Then, your DMs of None talk about the D&D "canon" and whether it has any value. What should be in the new canon and what are the books that have influenced your Dungeon Mastering? What is in your Appendix N?  Let us know!   Kickstarter Roundup:  Critical Role: The Animated Series Lasers and Liches: Tales of the Retroverse Comrades RPG Arcana of th...

DMs Matt and Rob are joined by the Smithsonian Institute's Paul Sturtevant. Not only is Paul the founder and editor-in-chief of The Public Medievalist , but he has a new book, The Middle Ages in Popular Imagination: Memory, Film and Medievalism , that listeners of this show will really love.  We talk about castles in DC, what the public knows about medieval history, and how to deal with race in ro...

DMs Matt and Rob review the new version of the Artificer.  An effusion of infusions for everyone, huzzah! Happy Artificer Day to one and all.  But first, the Lasers & Liches kickstarter is back ! Be sure to check it out and have a listen to our full review back in Episode 23 .    Listener questions: David asks, "Can I improvise my way through world-building?" Ryan asks, "How should I prepare for a...

The DMs of None chat about home-brewing classes in sub-classes in 5e DnD. We take a look at some of our favorite homebrew and third-party classes and speculate about what to create on the show in the future!   Classes and sub-classes reviewed: The Blood Hunter by Matt Mercer The Scholar by Charrmeleon The Pugilist by Benjamin Huffman Broath of the Brotherhood by Ryan Bennett  Oath of the Common Ma...