Low fantasy is gritty, grounded, and high stakes. How can we make that work in 5th edition D&D?
How to run low fantasy D&D
The 2022 Holiday Gift Guide
Welcome to the 2022 Scroll for Initiative Holiday Gift Guide! No affiliate links, no product endorsements, just well-intentioned, thoroughly researched advice!
Make Your Goblins Unique: Thinking in Depth about Monsters and Factions
I have recently enjoyed watching Baron de Ropp’s YouTube videos about fantasy geopolitics, and it got me thinking about how we can do so much more with the monsters and factions in our games. I wouldn’t necessarily say that this post is ‘geopolitics’ per se, but that's certainly part of it. I think this approach … Continue reading Make Your Goblins Unique: Thinking in Depth about Monsters and Factions
Mordenkainen, Tasha, and Fizban: the great wizards of D&D history
Evard’s Black Tentacles. Melf’s Acid Arrow. Leomund’s Tiny Hut. Have you ever looked at these spells and thought, man, who are these people? If so, this post is for you!
Forbidden Lands: gritty survival fantasy in a world of endless exploration (review)
Forbidden Lands does many of the things I want D&D to do - and does them better. This game feels old school but has all the elegance of a modern RPG.
Everyday Heroes: a new d20 Modern game for 5e
If you’re anything like me, the post title alone should be enough to get you excited! I was a huge fan of d20 Modern back in the day, so I was delighted to hear that it was returning for a 5th edition revamp. Dave and Jeff at Evil Genius Games reached out to me a … Continue reading Everyday Heroes: a new d20 Modern game for 5e
How to run a session zero
Want to start a new campaign? Run a session zero first. Here's how!
Building a New World: Part 2
Having determined what my world as a whole wil look like, it’s time to zoom in on one continent in detail.
Building a New World: Part 1
This week, I downloaded the World Builder’s Guidebook from DriveThruRPG, and my goodness, what a find. Many thanks to Twitter user @Archarzel for putting me onto this. The World Builder’s Guidebook is a 96-page supplement by Richard Baker, published in 1996 for the 2nd edition of AD&D. This was about a year before TSR was … Continue reading Building a New World: Part 1
EXCLUSIVE: New products for 2021
Happy April Fool’s! D&D fans are always on the lookout for ways to spend their hard-earned cash. Now, in a world exclusive, Scroll for Initiative can reveal that the following D&D products are confirmed for autumn 2021. Merch, merch, merch! Spelljammer: Adventures in Wild Space The final frontier. May the Force be with you.– Elminster … Continue reading EXCLUSIVE: New products for 2021