Mastering Dungeons

Episode 152 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: The 2014 DMG Chapter 8 – Running the Game! Seven chapters later, the DM finally is told how to run the game! Was the wait worth it? Shawn and Teos review which parts hit the mark and which fall short. News: Hasbro’s Rough Q2, Gen Con Breaks Records, Crawford on Settings, 2024 More Like 2014, and more! Contents 00:00 Gooooooool 02:02 Lite...

Episode 151 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: The 2014 DMG Chapter 6 – Treasure! Shawn and Teos ponder treasure. How much to give out, and how often? What is the role of treasure and its implications? From attunement to sentient items, we dig into the 2014 5E DMG and what we might want to see in 2024. News: A giant problem for D&D, Free League rocks ENnies, Cthulhu Saved, and mor...

Episode 150 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: The 2014 DMG Chapter 6 – Downtime! Shawn and Teos are huge fans of Downtime, introduced in the 2014 5E DMG. However, the material in Chapter 6 has been changed greatly by Xanathar’s and Acquisitions Incorporated. What would Shawn and Teos want from the 2024 DMG? News: Translated SRD, Sales Figures for D&D, D&D Movie Sequel, Top Cr...

Episode 149 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: The 2014 DMG Chapter 5 – Urban and Unusual Environments! Shawn and Teos revisit the 2014 5E DMG by following Chapter 5. The rest of the chapter covers Urban and Unusual Environments, plus Traps. What would Shawn and Teos add to the 2024 DMG? News: WotC closes eOne in the UK, Paizo closes office, D&D Gen Con events sort of, and more! C...

Episode 148 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: The 2014 DMG Chapter 5 – Urban and Unusual Environments! Shawn and Teos revisit the 2014 5E DMG by following Chapter 5. The rest of the chapter covers Urban and Unusual Environments, plus Traps. What would Shawn and Teos add to the 2024 DMG? News: Critical Role heads to London, Free HeroQuest, D&D at SDCC, and more! Contents 00:00 Ita...

Episode 147 of Mastering Dungeons This week's main topic: James Introcaso of MCDM joins Shawn to discuss the difference between writing a custom RPG vs creating for 5E! News: Owlbear Love, ENnies, Gen Con Online, and more! Contents 00:00 James Introcaso! 01:57 Creating for WotC 06:22 Success Failure Spectrum? 13:29 Character Arcs? 22:26 True Owlbears? 24:41 New Systems? 29:41 Ennies 35:16 Gen Con...

Episode 146 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: Mike Shea joins Shawn to compare the benefits of Organized Play vs Home Games! News: D&D Playtest 6,  Baldur’s Gate Date, Final ORC License, and more! Contents 00:00 Swimming 01:07 5E Splinter? 10:24 Adventure Design? 27:45 Playtest Packet 6 30:26 Final Orcs 39:06 Beadle & Grimm’s 44:16 Baldur’s Gate Date 45:39 Savage Worlds 46:39 Aetheri...

Episode 145 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: The 2014 DMG Chapter 5 – Wilderness and Settlements! Shawn and Teos revisit the 2014 5E DMG by following Chapter 5. Do they get lost in creating and traversing a wilderness? Do they find the worst settlement table ever? News: America is Neutral Good, Blood in Baldur’s Gate, Origins Awards, Diana Jones Finalists, and more! Contents 00:00 O...

Episode 144 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: The 2014 DMG Chapter 5 – Adventure Environments! Shawn and Teos revisit the 2014 5E DMG by following Chapter 5 and rolling up a random dungeon. Is the result satisfying or does it fall apart? News: Reddit Woes, Renegade Oversteps, Freelancer Pay Survey, Gamehole Events, and more! Contents 00:00 Whole Enchilada 02:11 Memorable Campaign? 08...

Episode 143 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: Celeste Conowitch on Designing Tales of the Valiant! What does it take to design a new variant of D&D? Hear the valiant tales of Celeste Conowitch, Senior Game Designer at Kobold Press!  News: Upper Deck Sues Ravensburger, 2024 Update, Final Rivals Stream, Creator Spotlight, and more! Contents 00:00 Shawn Issues 00:55 DM Fiat? 04:59 2024...

Episode 142 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: The 2014 DMG Chapter 3 – Creating Nonplayer Characters! Shawn and Teos revisit the 2014 5E DMG. From ideals and bonds tables, to hirelings, to villain motives, does this tell a would-be-author how to craft a great NPC?  News: Candela Obscura, Valiant Kickstarter, Sharkadia, D&D Pride Gear, and more! Contents 00:00 Across the Masterverse 0...

Episode 141 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: The 2014 DMG Chapter 3 – Creating Adventures, part 2! Shawn and Teos revisit the 2014 5E DMG. From event-based adventures to the encounter building rules, does this tell a would-be-author how to craft a great adventure?  News: D&D Marketing Summit, 2023 Product Reveals, Price Increases, Planescape Hopes, and more! Contents 00:00 Geeky Gua...

Episode 140 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: The 2014 DMG Chapter 3 – Creating Adventures! Shawn and Teos revisit the 2014 5E DMG. We look at Creating Adventures. Does this tell a would-be-author how to craft a great adventure? News: UA Survey, D&D Producer Job, Russ Nicholson Remembered, Flummox, Dungeon Secrets, and more! Contents 00:00 Speaking of Geeks 02:19 Automating Complexit...

Episode 139 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: The 2014 DMG Chapter 2 – The Multiverse! Shawn and Teos revisit the 2014 5E DMG. We look at Creating a Multiverse and whether it even belongs in Chapter 2. If it does, what should it look like in the 2024 DMG?  News: Unearthed Barbarians, New Hasbro eOne Streaming Channel, Critical Role Launches New Stream and RPG, and more! Contents 00:0...

Episode 138 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: Looking Back at the 2014 DMG – Chapter 1! Shawn and Teos revisit the 2014 5E DMG. How well does it help DMs and what would we change for 2024? News: Weapon Mastery analysis, Keith Baker closes KB Presents, Diana Jones awards, Crowdfunding Spotlight, and more! Contents 00:00 Kids Am I Right? 01:52 Valiant Resistance? 06:07 Polymorph Woes? ...

Episode 137 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: Roll20 on VTT Updates Morgan Buck and Andrew Searles visit Shawn and Teos to discuss the history of Roll20, upcoming improvements, the company’s role in the industry, international growth, and much more! News: New UA, Class as Content, Acquisitions Inc in Libraries, Strong Hasbro Q1, and more! Contents 00:00 Smile Like You Mean It 01:09 A...

Episode 136 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: Looking Back at the 2014 DMG - Intro! Shawn and Teos revisit the 2014 5E DMG. How well does it help DMs and what would we change for 2024? News: Critical Role RPGs, World Record D&D, Into the Motherland Green Ronin, Gloomhaven RPG, Ghostfire on Beyond, and more! Contents 00:00 High School Redux 03:24 Half-Mechanics? 10:57 Home vs Publishe...

Episode 135 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: Dungeon World and Powered by the Apocalypse! Shawn and Teos move to examine Dungeon World and the Powered by the Apocalypse games. We compare the design to D&D and share what we love most about these innovative story-focused RPGs. News: Big Bad Con Online, Diana Jones, Ampersand Boxers, Design Dash, and more! Contents 00:00 Boys Are Back...

Episode 134 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: Kevin Kulp and the many GUMSHOE RPGs! Designer Kevin Kulp joins us as we discuss how TimeWatch, Night’s Black Agents, Swords of the Serpentine, and many other amazing games all build on the excellent GUMSHOE system. We compare the design to D&D and share what we love most about these innovative RPGs. News: D&D Summit, PH in the Top 100, S...

Episode 133 of Mastering Dungeons!  This week's main topic: Themes and Genres in RPGs! What is meant by an RPG’s theme? What impact does it have, and why are some games better for a particular theme than others? Shawn Merwin and Ben Byrne discuss themes and genres and present examples in RPGs. News: D&D Direct, Movie Success, VTT Preview, Hobby Grows, and more! Contents 00:00 Ben Byrne! 02:11 Play...

Episode 132 of Mastering Dungeons!  Support the Forge of Foes: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/slyflourish/the-lazy-dms-forge-of-foes-for-5e?ref=e2zf6e  This week's main topic: Rich Lescouflair and the Esper Genesis RPG! Rich Lescouflair joins Shawn to discuss the latest D&D news and Esper Genesis - his amazing sci-fi version of 5E D&D. News: D&D Community Update, Choose-a-path Before the Sto...

Episode 131 of Mastering Dungeons!  Support the Forge of Foes: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/slyflourish/the-lazy-dms-forge-of-foes-for-5e?ref=e2zf6e  This week's main topic: The 13th Age RPG! We take a look at 13th Age, an RPG inspired by the 3rd and 4th editions of D&D. Rob Heinsoo and Jonathan Tweet encourage greater storytelling and even a bit of chaos. Learn about these innovations and...

Episode 130 of Mastering Dungeons!  We both have Kickstarters: Grim Hollow - Vallikan Clans: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/977277590/grim-hollow-valikan-clans   Forge of Foes: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/slyflourish/the-lazy-dms-forge-of-foes-for-5e?ref=e2zf6e  This week's main topic: Fate campaigns with Mike Olson! Mike has worked on many Fate projects, so he helps us look into Fa...

Episode 129 of Mastering Dungeons!  We both have Kickstarters: Grim Hollow - Vallikan Clans: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/977277590/grim-hollow-valikan-clans   Forge of Foes: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/slyflourish/the-lazy-dms-forge-of-foes-for-5e?ref=e2zf6e  This week's main topic: The Fate RPG! We take a look at Fate's RPG and how different it is from D&D. News: D&D movie direc...

Episode 128 of Mastering Dungeons!  Teos celebrates the launch of the Forge of Foes Kickstarter, which you can back and preview here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/slyflourish/the-lazy-dms-forge-of-foes-for-5e?ref=e2zf6e This week's main topic: To Be or Not to Be a Villain, with James Introcaso and Rudy Baso! We take a look at other RPGs and compare them to D&D, this time an adventure based...