Author Archives: Joseph

Quest for the Forest Gems: Session #3

Posted on August 27, 2021 by Joseph

My youngest demanded that we continue the adventures of Rose the Druid, and the quest to recover the five Forest Gems to restore the magical woods. So we did! Play time: 1 hour Characters: Rose the Druid (2) To the … Continue reading →

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Book Review Mini: Beowulf (Heaney)

Posted on August 26, 2021 by Joseph

What’s it about? (SPOILERS!) The hero Beowulf sails to the great hall of Heorot where the people are being terrorized by the monster Grendel. After a some courtly conversation, boasting, and insults, Beowulf and his men go to sleep in … Continue reading →

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One-Shot: Infernal Firefox (homebrew)

Posted on August 15, 2021 by Joseph

I had an opportunity to run a quick one-shot for some friends using my homebrew RPG system. It’s a little like Dungeon World, World of Dungeons, Blades in the Dark, etc. Level-less, class-less, roll 1d6 to resolve an action. Low … Continue reading →

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To Hunt the Stars: Session #3

Posted on August 13, 2021 by Joseph

The adventure continues! Last time, our heroes went diving for tongs in a boiling lake, went apple-picking in a twisted orchard, and lost two friends to a voracious meadowshark and a pack of talon-dashers… Play time: 4 hours Adventurers: Altair the Clockwork … Continue reading →

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Fangs of Vulgoth: Campaign Art

Posted on July 31, 2021 by Joseph

Last night, my awesome players surprised me with this fantastic piece of art they commissioned to commemorate our last campaign. Check this out: I’m a very lucky DM.

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To Hunt the Stars: Session #2

Posted on July 31, 2021 by Joseph

The adventure continues! Last time, our heroes arrived in the village of Kettle, fought some monsters, beat up some kids, hired a lot of locals to do their dirty work, and found a long lost hammer. Play time: 4 hours Adventurers: … Continue reading →

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To Hunt the Stars: Session #1

Posted on July 17, 2021 by Joseph

A new campaign begins! As an experiment, I am running this whole campaign at Level 3. No XP, no leveling up. Also, to create some group cohesion right from the start, I had my players invent a reason for being … Continue reading →

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Quest for the Forest Gems: Session #2

Posted on July 11, 2021 by Joseph

My daughter and I have played a lot of D&D this spring, but somehow we forgot about her solo quest, so today we got back in the saddle! Play time: 1 hour Characters: Rose the Druid (2) Prowling the Woods … Continue reading →

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D&D Experiment: Faster combat by skipping the monsters

Posted on July 10, 2021 by Joseph

I run a 5E campaign, and while I really like to create monsters and combat scenarios for my players, I don’t like dealing with monster stat blocks or adjudicating all the rules and rolls that happen during a combat encounter. … Continue reading →

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D&D Question: How to start a good sandbox campaign?

Posted on July 5, 2021 by Joseph

A sandbox campaign has no one central story. It’s a basket full of little stories, lots of little opportunities to wander about and do whatever. And the general wisdom seems to be that you start somewhere small, with a big … Continue reading →

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