How to roleplay every NPC (almost!)

I recently came across the idea of a psychological gesture from Justin Alexander of the Alexandrian. This is a technique created by Michael Chekhov where actors use a physical action to capture and express their character's main emotional or psychological state. I've been trying it out a bit, and it's fun and really helps me get in character quickly. 

Seven twists to make your D&D world unique

D&D diverges from our own world in seven major ways. How would our games be different if we moved away from these core assumptions?

The Great 2023 RPG Gift Guide

Here we go again! WELCOME to the 2023 Scroll for Initiative Holiday Gift Guide. A few things first. This is an independent blog. There are no affiliate links here, nor am I being paid in any way to endorse these products. (Believe me, I wish I were!) As always, please support your Friendly Local Game … Continue reading The Great 2023 RPG Gift Guide

So You Want to Be a Game Master: Review

If you're serious about DMing, you will know who Justin Alexander is. So what is his new book all about, and what did I make of it?

What Are the Best Dungeon Denizens by Level?

According to Appendix A of the 2014 Dungeon Master’s Guide, around half of the chambers in a given dungeon will be inhabited by ‘monsters’, and of these, around a third will be the dungeon’s ‘dominant inhabitants.’ My question: who are these dominant inhabitants? For the purposes of this article, I am thinking mostly about humanoids. … Continue reading What Are the Best Dungeon Denizens by Level?

A Complete Guide to the 13 Damage Types in D&D: Part Three

Today is the final article looking at the 13 different damage types in 5e D&D. For this post, I am looking at what I consider to be the four ‘magical’ damage types. These ones don’t actually exist in the real world, so we have a bit of creativity as to how we imagine them.