How to make your game badass by stealing from Borderlands

Today’s post might seem like an odd proposition, but Borderlands has considerable shared DNA with D&D: its most significant forerunner is probably Diablo, which itself is based on roguelike dungeon-crawlers and ultimately . . . yep, D&D.

How to stop D&D feeling like a video game

For many people, playing an RPG is about immersion, imagination, unpredictability, and collaboration – and if your game feels like a video game, maybe something is wrong.

What does a 20th-level dungeon look like?

That’s it. That’s the article. The simple truth: I was thinking about this earlier in the week and thought it would be interesting. If you don’t like this article, I have others! For most of us, this is essentially a thought experiment. Very, very few games get to 20th level. My Mad Mage campaign didn’t; … Continue reading What does a 20th-level dungeon look like?

Review: Dungeon of the Mad Mage (and a new ranking)

I overlooked this adventure for far too long. Now I rate it as one of my favourite 5e adventures so far.

How To Homebrew Your Own Game Rules In D&D

Sooner or later, you are going to want to tinker with something in your game. The thing is, should you? What’s worth tinkering with, and what is better left ‘as is’?

Players: you need a combat crib sheet

A combat crib sheet is an order of operations: a brief instruction manual for how to ‘optimize’ my character. For spellcasters, high-level characters, and characters with interesting feats and abilities, it can really come in handy.