UA Playtest 8: Bastion System, Revised Cantrips
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He/Him
The “I Know A Guy” House Rule
The “I Know A Guy” House Rule - The TTRPG network
Originally posted by David Nett on Twitter, the “I Know A Guy” house rule is intended to give all players a way to influence the story without handwaving away any difficult narrative situation the DM might want to put them in. The comparison that David used was the moment in Empire Strikes Back when Han decided to go to Lando for help, but wasn’t actually sure how Lando would receive him. In other words, the PC knows this person, but they don’t get to control what they do. The text of the rule is as follows: ~~~~ In any situation (where it makes sense), a PC can declare “I know a guy,” and then quickly sketch that NPC & the relationship. Fewer details are usually better - that leaves room for the DM & PCs to play. Upon declaration, the NPC exists. Then, when the PCs try to interact with the NPC, the player who created that NPC makes a Charisma roll to see how the NPC reacts. Depending upon the situation, the DM may decide advantage/disadvantage applies. ~~~~ Another Twitter user suggested implementing the rule with uses equal to a PC’s charisma modifier, minimum 1. I don’t like that version, because I think one of the benefits of this rule is to allow players with characters that don’t usually have as much to do in social interactions (read: martials and/or characters with low charisma) to participate in the story, as long as they are engaged and thinking about their characters. I might instead tie it to expending a heroic inspiration, which has some synergy with rewarding a deep connection to one’s character (through good RP) with a new way to shape the story.
The History of DnD that Hasbro Refused to Learn From - Extra Credits
The History of DnD that Hasbro Refused to Learn From - Extra Credits - The TTRPG network
The EC team put together this breezy and accessible overview of the legal, financial, and creative history of DnD, from its creation in the 1974 to the OGL fiasco of early 2023. It’s sad but a little funny how cyclical the licensing situation has been for the past 50 years. Here’s hoping that the community’s protests earlier this year helped break that cycle.
PHB 2024 Playtest Drops Tomorrow - Overview
PHB 2024 Playtest Drops Tomorrow - Overview - The TTRPG network
Crawford says it’s the biggest yet, with 7 classes (Experts: Ranger, Rogue, Bard; Priests: Cleric, Paladin, and Druid; and Monk confirmed), spells and weapon mastery tweaks, capstones back at lvl20 (epic boons will be pushed to another UA), and subclass progression reverted to the 2014 cadence after lvl3. Notably, rogues are seemingly getting another feature at lvl5 to make up for the fact that they get very nothing from their subclass between 3 and 9.
Which came first for you: DnD, or DnD media?
Which came first for you: DnD, or DnD media? - The TTRPG network
Up until 4e, DnD (and TTRPGs in general) were pretty much only spread through the game itself. You either knew someone who played, or maybe you heard about it on the internet and you were interested so you sought out a local game shop, something like that. Regardless, your first experiences with what DnD was like (ignoring fear-mongering movies and other negative media) was likely to be from playing it. That seems to have changed with 5e. DnD media is bigger than it’s ever been. Actual play podcasts and shows are everywhere. Speaking personally, though I had been in lots of LGS from playing a ton of MtG growing up, my first direct exposure to DnD was finding The Adventure Zone (way back when it first started as a “one-off” side thing from MBMBAM). From there, I learned about Critical Role, and it only took a few watches of that before I resolved to actually find a group to play with. How about everyone else? Did you get into the game because a friend invited you to play, or did you get hooked on some DnD show and decide “I want to do that, too!”