#dungeonsandkobolds dms

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Master Post of My Fave NPCs in My Campaign:

Old Man Riddles

(Can appear anywhere and it'll make sense)

Entire deal is he sits in a puddle of mud splashing about and throws mud at the party if they get a riddle wrong

Chester

(Again can appear anywhere without explanation)

A mimic that talks! He takes the form of a chest, you throw 10 gold into his mouth and he spits out a random, maybe useful potion. He does not know what any of the potions do

Sofa

Chester's best friend. Essentially a dog. Licks everything, but mimics are adhesive so he gets stuck to things a lot.

The Meat Traders

(Found on the road)

Curse by the meat witch to trade meat for meat. They can ONLY accept meat in payment and only have meat to trade.

Frat Boy Doomsday Cult

Having a massive rager to celebrate the end of the world. The world doesn't end. They fight with lacrosse sticks

Billy McGee

Local old man that does tours of the catacombs. All of his ancestors are in the your, having died of riding animals such as "2 dragons". When asked how they were riding multiple animals at once, his answer is "badly"

Thray

(Owns Thray's Curiousities)

Gay vampire that runs an Antiques Store. Refuses to uncurse the cursed items cause they're more fun the way they are. Beefs with all other arcane practitioners, currently banned from the wizards uni.

I'll add more as I remember more

#dnd #dungeons and dragons #dungeonsandkobolds #dungeon master #dm #dungeonsandkobolds campaign #dungeonsandkobolds dms #dnd stories #dm inspo #dnd ideas #npc #npcs #homebrew setting #dm ideas #dnd npcs #campaign ideas #ttrpg

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Oh also I guilt tripped by party with a mimic in Strahd - turns out even when I'm doing a spooky campaign I'm good at making enemies just a lil creature, just a lil guy

#dnd #dungeons and dragons #dungeonsandkobolds #dm #dnd stories #curse of strahd #dungeonsandkobolds dms

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Oh boy I’m doing my DMs read through of Strahd before I run it and the Vistani are certainly...a choice...that was made.... in writing this campaign

#curse of strahd #dnd #dungeons and dragons #dungeonsandkobolds dms

[dungeonsandkobolds]

We’re gonna do costumes for Session 50 of my homebrew campaign and I’m letting my players decide which NPC I’m dressing up as (dangerous decision)

#dnd #dungeons and dragons #dm #dungeon master #dnd stories #dm tips #dungeonsandkobolds dms

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Still can’t believe that my players have been in the city with the wizards’ university for the past 10/15 sessions and have barely gone there when I offered them such compelling plots as:

- Ethics paperwork

- Nepotism

- Spoken Word Poetry Club

- Wall of Pamphlets at Entrance of University Where Academics Publish Their Latest Research and Their Responses to Other People’s Research (academic infighting)

- Interdepartmental Feuds

- Their Favourite Shopkeep from the Other City They Spent a Bunch of Time in is Periodically Banned from the University Throughout the Centuries (and they don’t really know why)

On the other hand, given I’ve worked at University affiliated organisations and will be starting a PhD soon, it’s probably been best that they haven’t encouraged me

#my campaign #dungeonsandkobolds dms #dungeonsandkobolds campaign #dnd #dungeons and dragons #dm #dungeon master #dnd stories

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Trying to get through Strahd before this Sat so I can give my players an accurate list of the triggers that will be present in the version of it I run

I’m highlighting the Shit out of this book

#Strahd #curse of strahd #dungeonsandkobolds #dungeonsandkobolds dms

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Me, planning Strahd: eh none of these haunted house soundscapes really suit, if I had time I'd make my own

Me: wait

Me: I made a bunch of creepy soundscapes ages ago for a show I worked on

Anyway I'm gonna be playing my own sounds in the background of strahd tonight

#dnd #dungeons and dragons #dungeonsandkobolds #curse of strahd #strahd #dungeonsandkobolds dms

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Shenanigans from Last Session

1. Players were following up a lead to try and find current BBE at a warehouse they’re friends with. They find an item has been stolen from the warehouse and i give them a handout of its tag, which has the buyer scratched out.

Players proceed to hold handout up to the light IRL - but I thought they might do that so didn’t write anything underneath. The witch then asks if the ink of the original label and that of the crossed out bit were different, I answer yes. Witch asks if she can use Prestidigitation to remove the ink crossing it out (using the cleaning/soiling thing).

I’m like you can try but at disadvantage cause that’s a very difficult thing to do. Doesn’t work.

Sorcerer asks “now that the ink is gone, can I see the indents where something was written”. Fails investigation check to see.

Both of these were very smart plays resulting from these players being (jokingly) mad that I thought ahead and didn’t write anything underneath

2. They’re in catacombs fighting Shambling Mounds, which I’d described as shrubs for Flavour.

Witch: “They’re made of plants, like branches and stuff yeah?”

Me: Narrows my eyes, “yes?”

Witch asks if she can use Wild Cunning - “Send the spirits to bring back wood for a fire”

I have previously established that it’s weird plants are in the catacombs, so there are probably no other plants around. I sit down on the floor head in hands and process for a moment. 

I allow her to roll for it, and she rolls super high.

Sure I guess they just circumvented an encounter with 4 Shambling Mounds. This may as well happen now

#dnd stories #dungeons and dragons #dungeonsandkobolds #dnd #dm #dungeon master #dungeonsandkobolds dms

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Y’all I am planning the Class Warfare/Revolution Time session and some of the things I’ve had to google today are Wild. Can’t post yet because some of my players follow me, but send strength.

Also if anyone has any ideas/suggestions for things to add to a revolution session (possibly storming the Lord and Lady’s manor house depending on how things go) and how to DM for revolutions/large scale conflicts, I’d appreciate any advice

#dnd #dnd stories #dungeonsandkobolds dms #dungeonsandkobolds #dungeons and dragons #dm #dungeon master #dm tips #dm advice

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Having a post that’s getting Notes on tumblr is a nightmare

Anyway I’m moving this weekend and am very excited to run my first DnD session in the new place!!! Bringing Curse of Strahd on my pre-move holiday to prepare to run another session!

#dungeonsandkobolds #dungeonsandkobolds dms

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Revolution Session

Just realized I forgot to post about the revolution session so here’s how went:

- The Totally Normal Fighter (we swear) who’s a noble missed last session so he was doing some prior clean up with the guards and then brought the guards to the strike

- He then promptly set up essentially the red cross and flew to the sorcerer to be like wtf is happening

- The Sorcerer who had very successfully snuck in with some union reps and done some negotiation between them and the Lord and Lady went outside to see everything was on fire and the Warlock was storming the manor house with the people

- Tense conversation ensues about everything being on fire and the Warlock messing up the Good negotiations

- One of the union reps is like ‘oh shit we don’t have a fire brigade and everything is on fire’

- Bard-barian who is on the other side of the walls surrounding the manor house and is from the city has the same thought and starts running to the wizard’s uni to put out the fire

- Druid spends most of the rest of their time trying desperately to convince the rich people in surrounding houses to flee before their house goes on fire

- Totally Normal Fighter grabs the Sorcerer and gets a rundown on what the Hell is happening while the Warlock continues to cause chaos and fight the elite guards who are now attacking the people who are trying to storm the Manor

- The Witch who had previously been chilling in the Thieves’ Tavern decides to fly over on her broom cautiously and see what is happening

- Totally Normal Fighter and Sorcerer start tearing through the house trying to find the Lord and Lady again

- Witch drops a previously used Dust of Dryness pellet now containing 15x15ft cube of water from a great height onto the fire, putting out the fire, taking most of the front of the house with it, and essentially taking a fire hose to the crowd gathered

- Totally Normal Fighter and Sorcerer find the Lord and Lady in a secret panic room with a mostly completed teleport circle, Sorcerer scuffs the circle so it won’t work. Totally Normal Fighter uses his standing as a noble to convince them to talk to the people

- Witch and Druid are helping the red cross with their efforts to recover and heal unconscious people

- Totally Normal Fighter and Sorcerer appear at the top of the stairs just as The People and Warlock storm the house

- Druid and Witch stand in the doorway as a tense stand-off happens

- This entire time Bard-barian has been running to get the wizards, barrelling through guards, children, carts, anything in her way. And a whole host of Evocation Wizards appears in the front yard of the Manor as this stand off is happening

- Union Leader turns to Witch and goes ‘ah you’re that child that tried to rob my warehouse that Sorcerer told me they sent for cause you might have the necromantic necklace that started this, you’ll have to come inside with the item’

- Witch is 13 and does not like this pressure so teleports backwards 30ft and tries to hide

- Negotiations ensue in which, honestly I’m so proud of how in character everyone were, but they manage to negotiate a happy peace where the Lord and Lady are essentially figureheads (so the empire won’t come and try and overthrow whoever actually has the power), and there’s a council who actually do run things

#dnd stories #dungeonsandkobolds dms #dungeonsandkobolds campaign #dnd #dungeons and dragons #dm #dungeon master #dungeonsandkobolds

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Honestly the biggest thing that in my experience makes DnD or any ttrpg run smoothly is buy-in

Players have to buy-in to the story otherwise it won't work

And by this I don't mean be railroaded by the DM I mean like,

When one of my players switches characters and I introduce them to the party by them just happening to be nearby, I know my players will find a reason to talk to the new PC cause it's important. If there's a noise outside they'll investigate (albeit cautiously) cause that's the point of the noise outside

You have to meet the DM at least halfway and Want to engage with the world

#dnd #dungeons and dragons #dungeonsandkobolds #dm #dungeon master

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Anyway I’m sorry everyone who’s starting to play/DM DnD amidst all of this monetization and tightening of copyright.

A reminder that you literally don’t have to own anything to start playing or running an RPG - I started DM-ing when I had no dice, no guidebooks, and barely knew the rules. I hadn’t even watched any DnD shows at that point. Hell you don’t even need an official character sheet (I make my own all the time)

#dnd #dungeons and dragons #dungeonsandkobolds #rpg #Tabletop RPG #Tabletop Games #dm #dungeon master

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Anyway the reason I commiserated about messing up was not entirely just to be sad online, sometimes as a DM you'll have off sessions, not be feeling things, or just mess up entirely and that's fine

Reminder to tell your DMs when you like their campaign cause DM post session crash is Real

#dm #dungeon master #dnd #dungeons and dragons #dungeonsandkobolds #dungeonsandkobolds talks

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Dear Aunt Agony, you mentioned you have a cart system in your group for absent players. Could you explain how that works? Since the people in my group have started working it has become increasingly difficult to have all of them at the table for semi-regular sessions.

So basically as a reward for one their first missions you give the players a horse and cart. If a player is away for a session, the explanation for where their character is, is that they're "over on the cart". This means that if they really need to/want to interact with the character for whatever reason they're still technically there, but they're not totally present. As well it's an easy explanation for when the party is traveling.

What's ended up happening for me as well, is that my players have been working on upgrading the cart so it's more of a caravan for them. So if they're on the cart they can either work on that, tend to the horses, or work on some other kind of downtime activity. If your party is in the city they can also shop as well.

It also means that when they enter a new city, the character whose player is absent could be looking for lodgings, etc. because they're in charge of looking after the cart today.

It's a kind of simple solution but I find it easier for everyone to navigate/think about rather than trying to have the DM control the character, or trying think up different reasons why the character isn't there that session. I think it also means players feel less like they're totally missing out cause technically their character is there.

It's also, if you're going to introduce it, best to flag this in session 0/the first session - just so you set the expectations.

#dungeon and dragons #dungeonsandkobolds #ask #response #reply #answer #dnd #dm #dungeon master #dm tips

[dungeonsandkobolds]

Planning a boss fight!

Anyone have tips on planning a satisfying boss fight? (where it’s only the encounter that day) - Challenge Rating is so unhelpful

#dnd #dungeonsandkobolds #dungeons and dragons #dm #dungeon master #dm tips