Taking 20 Podcast

In this heaver-than-usual rules episode, we take a look at some of the rules in Pathfinder 2e and D&D 5e for making monsters more or less powerful.  We also talk about some game-system-agnostic ways to scale your monsters up or down.   #DungeonsandDragons #DnD #Pathfinder #DMTips Resources: Resigned:  How to Know When It’s Time to Go: https://www.amazon.com/Resigned-Know-Truths-Stigma-Quitting-ebo...

Giants.  They're all tall and they have reach.  Prep work done for an adventure, right?  Hold your throwing stone, my DM friend.  The different species of giants have very different tactics, capabilities, and motivations.  This week Jeremy talks all about the differences and what makes them tick. #DnD #DungeonsandDragons #Pathfinder #DMTips Resources: Resigned:  How to Know When It’s Time to Go: h...

The 4 elements of creation in Dungeons and Dragons and Pathfinder lore are so powerful that each has its own plane of existence.  What's on these planes and what dangers will characters face when they go there?  Tune in to this episode when I discuss this and give you some adventure ideas for each plane!   #DungeonsandDragons #DnD #Pathfinder #Elemental #Planes    Resources: Resigned:  How to Know...

If you've reached the point where you need to leave the gaming group, the next steps in the process are going to be difficult emotionally and fraught with peril.  Handled incorrectly, you can make lifelong enemies of your DM, your fellow players, and anyone they may know.  In this episode I talk about the mature and professional way to separate from the group minimizing animosity or hurt feelings....

Much is written about DM burnout.  But you're a player and while you know you should be excited for the Dungeons and Dragons or RPG session tonight, you find yourself dreading it and it doesn't even sound like a good time.   If this is you, you might be experiencing RPG burnout.  In this episode, we talk about the causes of burnout and what you can do to find that joy again.   #DungeonsandDragons...

Don't forget to send me your contest entries before Friday, November 19th!  Minor milestone as we hit episode #150.  This week we will talk about Rovagug, the monster in Pathfinder lore that will bring about the end of the multiverse.  In this episode we ask:  Where is it now?  What is it doing?  Why do campaigns need creatures of unfathomable evil and chaos and destruction?     #Pathfinder #Dunge...

Good ideas can come from anywhere:  movies, music, streaming series, and even video games.   You may think that I only mean RPG video games like Dragon Age or The Witcher.  Good ideas for characters, game mechanics, and even plots can be taken from video games of all kinds from Super Mario Brothers to Portal.  In this episode, you'll hear about tips for taking these ideas and using them at your ga...

We conclude horror month with the mysterious and aloof creatures of the Feywild or First World.  What makes these creatures scary?  What the heck are the Seelie and Unseelie courts?  This nymph is offering me a deal that's too good to be true.  Should I take it?  Tune in and find out. #DnD #DungeonsandDragons #Pathfinder #DMTips #Fey Resources: https://roleplayersrespite.com/fey-creatures-in-dnd-5...

Today is a mini-listener mailbag episode addressing two major aspects of horror games, tension at the table and corruption in your game world.  Please listen in as Jeremy discusses two questions from listeners like you.   #DMTips #DnD #DungeonsandDragons #Pathfinder   Resources: 3D Crafts and Curios on Facebook:  https://www.etsy.com/shop/3DCraftsAndCurios   3D Crafts and Curios on Instagram:  htt...

In this episode, we discuss the published lore in 5e and Pathfinder about what happens after characters pass away.   A fellow podcaster and DM, Thorin McGee from the 3 Wise DMs podcast passed away this week, please consider donating to the GoFundMe set up to benefit his widow.     #DnD #DungeonsAndDragons #Pathfinder #3WiseDMs #ThorinMcGee   Resources: https://www.gofundme.com/f/thorin-mcgees-lega...

While there are similarities between the ethereal and astral planes in the way 5e and Pathfinder present them, there are distinct differences and they are located different places in the different cosmologies.  In this episode, we talk about the 4 planes and some unique characteristics and encounters you can find in them. #DnD #DungeonsandDragons #Pathfinder #GMTips #Ethereal #Astral Resources: 5e...

Welcome to Horror Month at the Taking 20 Podcast!  All month we will be talking about scary/spooky topics to hopefully make your RPGs even better.  This week, I talk about some of the major types of horror and confess what makes my hackles sit up and turn red. #DungeonsandDragons #DnD #Pathfinder #DMTips Resources None.  Just the ramblings of an old, insane DM.

There are a huge number of people and companies producing a plethora of RPG content for various systems out there.  Some of this content makes for greart adventures, location ideas, quest hubs, monsters, NPCs, and anything else you need for your game system.  So what if some of it is written for a game you don't play. In this episode I encourage you to look at other game system content to find wha...

I'm not done with nerfing!  There's a major aspect of not nerfing PCs that I forgot to cover last week:  letting your PCs excel at what they're good at. Tune in this week as we continue the discussion on this important topic! #DnD #DungeonsandDragons #Pathfinder #DMTips

Sometimes games can get out of balance and it can feel like the PCs have all of the advantages and that's probably because they do.  GMs may be tempted to take away or reduce the effectiveness of abilities or equipment used by the PCs but I'm here to tell you there's only one good reason to do so.   #DMTips #DnD #DungeonsandDragons #Pathfinder #RPG   Resources: The stupid sacred geometry feat:  ht...

Spelljammer is Dungeons and Dragons' attempt to bring a touch of sci fi to their traditional fantasy RPG.  It's like 50s Pulp Sci Fi novels were inserted into the world of swords and sorcery, gnomes and nagas.  Frankly it's very very strange but in this episode I encourage you to embrace the strange and don't dismiss it simply because it's different than your usual game. #DungeonsandDragons #DnD #...

Betrayal is a common story trope you see in movies, books, and even let's play podcasts.  It can be an amazing moment to include in your game but should you?  How can you use this dangerous tool to the betterment of your Pathfinder or Dungeons and Dragons game without it backfiring on you?  Tune in and find out.   #DungeonsandDragons #DnD #Pathfinder #Betrayal   Resources https://jennethdyck.wordp...

It's hard to make NPCs that the PCs will trust, open up to, be vulnerable with.  Unfortunately it's not something that anyone can do with 100% success rate.  So, how DO you make NPCs the players will gravitate toward?  How can you portray these NPCs in such a way that the party wants to interact with them?  Tune in and find out. #DnD #DungeonsandDragons #Pathfinder #DMTips

The Gap is an aberration in the lore of most RPG products:  a time where history is completely broken and no records remain.  What do we know about this time period and how can you use similar empty periods of history in your campaign world?  Tune in to find out. #Starfinder #Paizo #Dungeons and Dragons #DnD

Before the MCU introduced the world to that word, "Multiverse" meant something different in the RPG world:  a collection of universes, each of which was called a plane.  In this episode, Jeremy asks for feedback about starting a new series about the different planes, talks about running adventures in both a traditional RPG multiverse and an MCU-like one. #DungeonsandDragons #DnD #Pathfinder #DMTip...

This week Jeremy discusses the flexible tool for DMs known as the Rule of Three, including the 3 Clue Rule and other variants of this handy method you can use at your table to keep one bad decision by the PCs from derailing your game and ruining all that time you spent preparing for the game session. Please consider donating to the podcast at www.ko-fi.com/taking20podcast .  #DnD #DungeonsandDrago...

This week's topic comes courtesy of Andreas Jonasson who listens from Sweden and generously donated to my ko-fi at ko-fi.com/taking20podcast.  In this episode, Jeremy talks about how to respectfully use source material from history, religion, and published game lore at your table and talks about some potential problems that can occur.   To learn more about the podcast, please head over to www.taki...

DMs are the sources of truth for the game world.  The players depend on us to provide the facts about encounters, the world, and NPCs and we should be truthful to the players the vast majority of the time.  But, there are times when sprinkling half-truths and lies into your game can make your world more realistic and keep your players on their toes.  In this episode Jeremy talks about motivations...

Democracies are largely prevalent on planet earth but you hardly ever see them in an RPG setting.  In this episode, Jeremy discusses why RPGs are rare, the positive and negative aspects of a magical or futuristic society that can be emphasized by a democracy and the logistical challenges of designing a democracy for your game world.   #Pathfinder #DungeonsandDragons #RPG #DnD #Andoran

Gaming inspiration can come from published material from existing game worlds.  In this episode we talk briefly about the Orcgate Wars, its history, the aftermath, and more importantly, how you can use this dramatic event as inspiration for history and adventures in your campaign world.   Hope you tune in and listen!   #OrcgateWars #DungeonsAndDragons #DnD #DM