Worldbuilding Archives - My first dungeon

Coming soon: Alice D&D 2 – Wonderland in Darkness

The first Alice in Wonderland one-shot is live now! You can enter the magical world and explore it for yourself along with your friends. But the magic won’t end there. There is more coming! In “Welcome to Wonderland” you and your friends entered Wonderland like Alice once did and save the day. It has been […]

What mini’s to use?

If your group has chosen to play with battle-maps (with either square or hex grid) than there is one last choice to make before you can play. What type of mini’s do you use? The most commonly used option is the DnD branded mini’s of characters, NPC’s and monsters. You will still have to buy […]

Getting into character

For each character you make you want it to be fun to play and unique. But how do you do that and not just make them a slightly gruffer or more chaotic version of yourself? Here are some easy characteristics and mannerisms to really make them stand out. Finding the character’s voice It might be […]

Designing traps for your next dungeon

Dungeons and Dragons consists of three components. Combat, Social Interaction and Exploration. The first two are quite self-explanatory, but Exploration is a collection of everything else the players do in the world. It’s walking through woods, exploring dungeons and best of all.. traps! What makes traps fun in my opinion is that is has consequences […]

Schools of magic in DnD

Magic is a powerful component in the world of Dungeons&Dragons. You can blow up your enemies, heal your friends and conjure allies to your aid. To have some semblance of sorting and balancing out these spells D&D divides them up into 8 “Schools” of magic. As a magic user you can choose amongst those (based […]

Creatures for your Christmas D&D one shot

Need some inspiration for a holiday DnD adventure? I got your back. Here are 5 types of creatures and how they would make an interesting and fitting encounter during the Christmas days. Blights (MM p31) These awakened plants may have a low Challenge Rating by themselves (What is CR?), but when encountered in a group […]

Minor Illusion – The Best DnD Spell

Fighting styles can be a lifesaver and a fireball can be game-changer, but no feat, spell or ability is a powerful in the game of Dungeons & Dragons as Minor Illusion. This cantrip is available to multiple (sub)classes or races or when you pick certain feats and it is a must-have! As with many other […]

Wraith Monster Manual Model of the Month

If you party comes across a Wraith at a relativaly low level it better watch out and prepare. It could mean a total team kill unless you either know what to expect or have an optimised and balanced party. With a Challenge Rating of 5 (What is CR?) it sounds doable enough, but it has […]

D&D battle tactics

A lot of the fun and mechanics of Dungeons&Dragons revolves around combat and fighting. Magic users have damaging spells, most feats help you in attacking or defending and there is even a class called Fighter. Not every fight is the same however. Sometimes the DM thows something at you and the tactics you were using […]

5 more underused normal items

Near the end of your adventures you and your compatriots have aquired some epic power and loot that no creature besides a god can hope to stand against. But even then you can make a great use out of the basics. Flip to the ‘Adventuring Gear’ page of the PHB and you can find some […]

How I made Pokémon D&D Making D&D Fanfiction part 2

After discovering how to use D&D mechanics to make a Harry Potter one-shot I followed that up by building the mechanics for Pokémon D&D. Firstly because I spent a lot of time in that world dating all the way back to Pokémon Blue. I played that game over and over again on my GameBoy Advanced […]

PC idea: Tasha Servius PC of the month (Paladin)

While double-checking Tasha’s service records before promoting her to General of the city guard it was discovered that she had skipped her two years of serving her community. Although this seems like a minor issue, seeing that she aced her mental and physical tests and evaluations, the Sergeant major refused her promotion. Maybe because she […]

How I made Harry Potter D&D Making D&D Fanfiction part 1

A few years ago I started my Dungeons and Dragons journey. Once I got the hang of stepping into the shoes of a hero in a pre-written world of magic and monsters I started wondering if I could also use it to finally go to other worlds like I had always dreamed of. I remember […]

Add riddles to D&D

If you want to spice up your D&D storytelling, diversify the puzzles or even give more depth to combat you can do so by adding riddles. They can force the players to think, give more colour to the setting and even turn fights into more than only hitting stuff until it dies (besides making the […]

PC idea: Diabelle Aries PC of the month (Tiefling Bard)

In her youth Diabelle has faced many hard times. She discovered what it is like being prejudiced and ridiculed for her demon-like appearance as a tiefling. She was born in a religious and superstitious village from a human mother that died during childbirth and without a father in sight. While the mother was disposed of […]

Oozes Monster Manual Model of the Month

Oozes (a.k.a. Dungeon Roomba’s) come in a few different variations, each with it’s own strengths. Despite their large size and slow pace they are very stealthy. They manage that by blending in with their dark and damp environment and waiting for their prey to come to them. The Ooze variations differ a bit in their […]

How to describe a scene in D&D

Dungeons&Dragons is a game in which the players take on a role and inhabit and explore a world more magical and fantastical than our own. Each location they visit has eons of history that are unbound by the boring rules of our world’s physics. But you don’t reflect that when you only say “you walk […]

Reactions Get the most out of your actions

Properly using of all your action types can be a great challenge and can really boost your party’s defence, damage output or battlefield control. Just as long as you know how to properly use them. During combat each creature on the battlefield gets one reaction per round and can use it when specific conditions are […]

PC idea: Aela Clearbranch PC of the month (Ranger Beast Master)

Aela Clearbranch is a middle aged Wood Elf. She has lived her whole life in a tribe deep in the woods of Aeltendar. There she has raised two beautiful and passionate sons. Her two children had recently left their tribe in search of their own adventures. To her tribe, Aela was an important addition. Thanks […]

The Mimic Monster Manual Model of the Month

Do you want to really surprise a new player with a classic D&D creature? Time to bring out a Mimic. These shapechanging monstrosities take on the form of whatever might lure a prey in close. They are most often portrayed as chest as those are always a relief for a player and their PC to […]

D&D while travelling in a van

The way I see D&D is as an amazing game in which anyone can become a world saving hero, no matter your personal lifestyle or experiences. All you need is the rulebook and people to play with, either in person or online. I got into Dungeons and Dragons a couple of years back and had […]

Interesting battles 2: Active environment

Dungeons&Dragons combat does not have to consist of rolling dice to hit until either the monsters or PC’s are dead. They can be so much more! In a previous blog I explained how to make it more interesting by playing the enemies smarter. But besides a balanced party and the enemies there is a third […]

PC idea: Fabian Miri Lockheard PC of the month (Rogue Thief)

Miri grew up on a farm where she had a good life, but she never felt complete. She never felt home in a girls body, especially when puberty kicked in. Although her family didn’t quite understand her situation they did support her when she told them she would head for the city for a sex-change. […]

The Owlbear Monster Manual Model of the Month

Among the earliest creations of Gary Gygax for D&D was the Owlbear. A monstrous combination of the body of a bear and head of an owl, filled to the brim with ferocity. It’s brute force and ill temper makes it a dangerous enemy for any opponent unlucky enough to cross it’s path. Strength and weaknesses […]

What is CR?

The CR in a D&D creatures stat block stands for Challenge Rating. Although it’s the perfect way to choose interesting enemies, the Challenge Rating is only a guideline. It’s an estimate of which level a balanced party of 4 players should be to be able to handle that single enemy. All based on it’s health, […]

Build types for an effective D&D party

There are many different options for cool characters by mixing classes, races and backgrounds. For an optimised Dungeons & Dragons party you would do well to consider the options and balance them off of each other. That way the group as a whole becomes stronger and each player has a chance to shine. These are […]

Random Encounter Generator

All the players need to do is roll up a Character Sheet and they are ready to play some Dungeons and Dragons. But as the Dungeon Master you are tasked with building a whole world and inhabiting it with creative stuff for your players to encounter. One way to create combat encounters is rolling for […]

PC idea: Luxian Ombraleaf PC of the month (Shadow Monk/Light Cleric)

Luxian Ombraleaf was born and raised in the Monastery of Twilight where Light Domain Clerics and Way of Shadows Monks are trained as a Ying and a Yang. Two opposing approaches that together create a better and balanced world. Once a Twilight acolyte has been trained they go out into the world to either bring […]

The Goblin Monster Manual Model of the Month

The most often used D&D creature from the Monster Manual is the Goblin. They are small, have a CR of only 1/4 (What is CR?) and live underground. But why are they so popular? An easy fit First off, they can fit nearly anywhere. They can be roadside bandits, hunting in the woods for meat […]

How to be a good Dungeon Master

Being a Dungeon Master is a highly respectable function. Where the players need only to roll up a character and work out the occasional level-up, the Dungeon Master has a full time job. They create and describe not only the world and everyone in it, but also how the PC’s fit into it all and […]

How to Multiclass in D&D

Although the separate classes in Dungeons and Dragons are rich enough to build countless characters around, sometimes your character concept goes beyond a single archetype. Luckily you always have the option to Multiclass. Combining the strengths (and weaknesses) of two or more classes into a single character. It can be amazing, but first you need […]

Book series for your next campaign

There are a lot of amazing fantasy books out there. Epic fantasies in sprawling lands where evil creatures hide around every corner, but heroes always emerge to save the day. These books can either be perfect if you don’t have enough (D&D) adventures in your life or as the source of inspiration for your world-building, […]

Build your own Dice Tray (free)

Dungeons & Dragons materials cost enough as it is. You need your books and dice, and it is more fun if you also have maps, mini’s, dice towers and all the other stuff you can think of. Those costs add up so why not create your own dice tray? – Download the file below (for […]

Make overland travel fun

While most Dungeons & Dragons campaigns deal mostly with interesting locations (like dungeons) and with the monsters inside it (like dragons), the one element that every DM handles differently is how the adventurers get to those locations. There are a lot of ways you can handle overland travel in your D&D game and it is […]

Interesting battles 1: Smarter enemies

A large part of D&D (and other TTRPG’s) is combat. Whether your group is tasked to kill monsters, they stumble into a den or a if they are set upon by bandits, the encounter will probably start with violence and end when the opponents are dead. Although this is massively entertaining, the repetitiveness might grow […]

Square maps vs Hexagon maps vs No maps

In D&D, and most other TTRPG’s, the DM’s pull out their maps when combat is about to start. These maps give everyone at the table a sense of the size of where they are, where the enemies are, possible hiding spots, any usable object and the exits. How they move through this space depends on […]

Quick explanation: What is Dungeons & Dragons (5e)?

D&D is a role-playing game in which you and some friends each play a character. It is set in a fantasy world in which heroes, magic and dragons exist. All you need to play, is some imagination, a special set of dice and a filled in character sheet (I’ll come back to this later). How […]

Learning D&D with podcasts

Interested in Dungeons & Dragons, but you don’t know how to get into it? One of the easiest ways is by listening to podcasts in which you hear them play and use the rules of D&D. The problem is, there a dozens of podcasts out there and not all of them are as good as […]

Why can’t I keep rolling my D&D skill check?

A question with a lot of confusion is why players can’t keep rolling their skill checks until they succeed. In my opinion there can be three reasons. You either ruin the opportunity, you only have time for one try or you believe it can’t be done. 1 – You get one chance You walk up […]

Making lycanthropy an actual curse

In books and movies turning into a werewolf is a horrible curse that changes people into savage beast without any control over their action. That makes it so strange that the lycanthropy curse in Dungeons & Dragons is almost worth seeking out. There are 5 type of lycanthropes, each of which gives the user a […]

Natural 1’s and 20’s

There are three ways to play Dungeons & Dragons. With ‘Rules as Written’ (RAW), ‘Rules as Interpreted’ (RAI) or ‘Rules as Fun’ (RAF). Playing RAW means you sticking to the rules as they are written in the core books without any grey area for creativity or flexibility. RAI means playing with the rules as they […]

5 underused normal items

An epic vorpal sword, +3 armor and a helmet that lets you read your opponents mind so you always have advantage. Late in a campaign the players are the ultimate power, equal to gods. But that’s not where most adventures start. Most of the time PC’s start at a low level with only the clothes […]

D&D base essentials & gift ideas

Do you want to start playing Dungeons & Dragons and you don’t know what you need to do so? Or are you perhaps looking for that perfect gift for you nerdy D&D playing friend? I have got your back. Check the list below and you are sure to succeed! D&D basicsThere is a lot of […]

Build a sport for D&D

You need a way to make your Dungeons and Dragons world feel larger than just the campaign you’re setting up. You want the world to feel alive. Like the everyday people do more than their everyday jobs and drink ale at the pub. Like they have a passion. A passion, however meaningless, that gets them […]

3 puzzles for your next dungeon

I freaking love puzzles. Throwing something at my players to confuse, entice or provoke them and test their problem solving and teamwork abilities is the highlight of the session for me. A good puzzle fits with the theme of the location, is logical for the original owner of the dungeon and makes sense when solved […]

5 minor magic items

One of the things my players enjoy when playing D&D is reaping the rewards after a tough fight or intricate puzzle. And what is better than a tailor-made magic items. These can give the players extra options while roleplaying or in fights, but they can be hard to balance correctly seeing they end up collecting […]

Fantasy names cheat-sheet

During adventures your players might ask for the names of faraway towns and cities or of some random stranger they meet on the streets. As the Dungeon Master you can’t have EVERYTHING in the world all fleshed out, so it might come in handy to have a little cheat-sheet from which you can take these […]

My first D&D experience

In 2018 I first found out about Dungeons and Dragons. While searching for a new podcast for my commute to work I came across “The Adventure Zone – Balance” and loved both the amazing story, which Dungeon Master Griffin McElroy tied up so very nicely at its conclusion, and the awesome mechanics the game of […]