I've been running campaigns long enough that I've stacked up NPCs like Pokemon cards, ready to unleash them onto unsuspecting players.  Sometimes they work wonders, other times they suck wind through a straw.  Let's take a look at a few and see what I could have done better.  

Core Concept: Jedrek is a one-man army.  Built by a broken monastery as a final solution, a Blackweave monk wields the power of the broken weave.  Using his skin as parchment, a Blackweave covers himself in arcane runes and tattoos, each connected to an ancient power.  By engaging a tattoo, he can cast the spell that was inscribed upon him, wielding the cosmic powers of the lost tribes of wizards.  But once the tattoo was spent, the ink burns off of him, lost forever.
  A Blackweave can add permanent augmentations to his body by inscribing runes upon the skin, and burning them over 100 days.  These marks become infused scar tissue, sewn with residual power.  One can use this technique to add extra ways to manipulate their Ki, make their bodies more formidable, or make their minds sharper.
Version 1.0: A Way Of The Long Death Monk at Level 17, with a Level 14 Gunslinger as backup VS a party of five level 10 adventurers.  Low Con saves and lucky rolls on my end put the melee friends on the stun train pretty fast, but things got pretty close.  A Tattoo of Contingency - Revivify was placed on him as a last resort by his Compendium (the order branch), which saved his skin.  Using Step Of The Wind, he escaped, healed, and returned for his quarry, killing a PC and taking the body. 
  Notes: It was a tough encounter and a decent field test for the build, but he didn't use a lot of his tattoos.  As it stood, his action economy required use of his Bonus Action to engage a tattoo.
Version 1.5: The players, now at full force: 10 characters at Level 13 VS 1 Level 18 Long Death Monk.  Taking no chances, the resident pyro cast instead Telekinesis, holding Jedrek aloft and restraining him.  As Telekinesis is a contest of checks, not saves, Jedrek's Diamond Soul (proficiency in all Saving Throws) doesn't engage.  Good job party!  However, because of one small wording technicality in Jedrek's build language...he wasn't entirely shut down.  He still had access to ALL of his Weave, so every round he'd struggle against the Telekinesis (fail), then spend a Bonus Action to engage a spell that was laced onto him.  It was a "chip damage" fight; still interesting and dangerous, but felt off somehow.  It also took a long time.  They killed him and burned the body (evidence), and felt good about avenging their ally.

Future Adjustments: We finally figured out what was bugging me.  Engaging the tattoos can still be a Bonus Action, but I propose a few limiting factors.  Certain on 1 and 2, entertaining 3 and 4.
1) He has to touch the tattoo, which requires movement.  If he's restrained, he can't do that.  Telekinesis should have shut him down completely.  It's the anti-monk spell!
2) There should be a Ki cost to engage the spell.  Either Spell Level = Ki Points spent or 1/2 Spell Level (rounded up) = Ki Points spent.  Cantrips are always 1 Ki Point.
3) I'm considering a spell level limitation.  Like no spells above 7th...  Then again, even with a 20th level monk, using 9 Ki to cast that crazy Meteor Swarm that others at my level can also crank out ...as a Bonus Action...  Yeah, no.  We're limiting this crap.  No 8th or 9th level spells.  7th I MIGHT be okay with.  We'll play with it.
4) The Runes he's burned take up attunement slots, or 1/2 an attunement slot.  They take a lot to get, including cost and training (100 days, remember), but they *are* permanent; so someone with a lot of time and resources can add on Runes easily.  They already have a maximum of 3 Runic Augments before their body can't take the strain anymore, but after that we've got Bracers of Defense, a Ring of Protection, and a Cloak of Protection (a total +4 AC, and a total +2 to all saves).  With Runes that make your Martial Arts 1d12 (instead of 1d10), allow you to Hunter's Mark, and others that grant you Sneak Attack for Ki...  Don't want anyone to get too beefy too fast.
Why?: Action economy is too far broken.  He can be a better wizard than a wizard, and still PUNCH REALLY HARD.
Is the Blackweave dead?  Nah.  But it requires more tweaking as a subclass.  Monks have A LOT of options already, so it may serve better in another class (Ranger could be interesting), open-ended to all classes (needs some secrecy), or needs a few more limitations/refinement.

Core Concept: The Daughters of Syn had been a consistent villain group all throughout campaign 2 on Tuesdays, and I'm a big fan of using common mythos and turning it on its head.  In this case, we're using the Seven Deadly Sins as our model.
  "Sly" is Sloth.  Laid back and lazy, this knight doesn't want to do much, instead opting for her familiar, Freya, to do most tasks for her.  But for all her laziness, if ever you were to hurt Freya, or try to hurt her more severely, she would finally show you her true power - frightening and efficient, she'd like to end the fight as soon as possible, so she can return to her nap.

Encounters and Impressions:  Sly was my absolute favorite side villain.  Every moment the party encountered her, they fell in love with her dry wit and lack of commitment.  She would often show up on the outskirts of a battle (showing that she was always watching for her mistress, Syndrosa), smoking a pipe and giving raucous commentary of the fight, quick to crack jokes or just shrug at veiled threats.  In fact, the first time she met the group, she helped most of them escape the Underdark (I wonder if that endeared her to them a bit).  She was really just gathering information on them at that point, but she really didn't care either way, so killing them would be boring.

Fight 1: The first real encounter with Sly involved the group trying to rescue a little girl trapped in the Underdark.  Sly had an amulet on her person with a soul trapped inside (but the party didn't know that, only that she had a nice amulet, it looked valuable).  The party turned into bugs and snuck into her room, while others tried to deal with Sly's partner, an Oathbreaker Paladin named Naz (Pride).  For most of the fight, the party simply kept Sly occupied as she played with them, always at the edge of caring.  It wasn't until Naz was killed that Sly began to show her true ferocity.  Sly's first boon involves Freya; the fire fox fuses with her form, granting her lycanthropic strength and speed, as well as some Greater Invisibility.  Couple this with the fact that she's already a Level 16 Druid by now...and we've got something serious on our hands.  The party has A LOT of close calls, but manages to kill her, her form crumbling away in strips of...ice?

Fight 2: MUCH TIME PASSES and the group assault the now Queen Syndrosa in her OWN LAIR, and are promptly defeated.  Despite this Full Party Capture moment, the players were SO HAPPY to find out that Sly was indeed alive, and the version they killed was some sort of Clone or Simulacrum.  Heck, she even helps them escape the follow-up encounter (again: she doesn't really care).  But upon returning to the Fortress of Syn, now better prepared and after taking out Lust and taking some weapons from Wrath, they come across the real Sly.  She toys with them a little...and then the Paladin kills the fire fox.
  A Storm of Vengeance, and A LOT of near-death experiences (2 deaths total, but yay Revivify), a well-timed Power Word Kill drops Sly for good (strange, she could have totally Counterspelled, but she didn't...).  The party was the SADDEST I have seen them after this fight - they didn't want it to end!

Build and Boons
Class: Druid 20, Circle of the Moon (not that she cares)
Standard Boons: Boon of Fortitude (HP +50, Temp HP Ward +20), Boon Fey Step (Movement +30 as a Misty Step)
Boon of the Fire Fox - grants the Knight a familiar in the form of a fire elemental.  This familiar can heal you from a distance and merge with you to grant extra physical bonuses and a burst of fire damage at the end of every one of your turns.
Boon of the Sloth - Aura of Relaxation (little things don't stress you out, Calm Emotions at all times, advantage on saving throws against being charmed).  Social power of Disarm (disadvantage for foes to resist your relaxed charm).  You have entertaining and informative visions involving the people you observe; you no longer sleep, but napping opens these visions to your perfect memory.  Whether you act on them...is totally up to you.
Is Sly gone for good? - Mmm.  Tricky thought; death can get weird in D&D, and resurrection moreso.  Depends on where her soul ended up, and who cares enough to get her back.  I have a feeling her return would not be an unwelcome one, at least by a few PCs. ;)

Core Concept: A Circle Of Spores Druid hell-bent on conquering the world of beasts, controlled by the Mantle of the General; an ancient artifact forged by the Erlking of the Feywild.  Woof.  That's heavy.
  Anox was a product of the Erlking's choices; after the Archfey took the Helm of the Hunt, his purging Valkyries decimated the forces of Anox's predecessor, Gurlanik, the Fade.  To rectify this, Anox used his only son as a lure to other beings touched by Fey energy, and used his Circle to "seed" them with necrotic powers - and his control.  The resulting Treant-Hybrid army, coupled with the stolen Mantle's innate power to call nearby beasts under his command, Anox began preaching dominion over the Wilds beyond and amassing an army of druids who shared his ideals.
  His son, Darius, finally fed up with the loss of innocent life, formed his own pack of druids - attempting first a coup, then, when that failed, an all-out-assault upon his father, while freeing those that would be hunted for his dark purpose.  This betrayal marked the beginnings of Anox's madness, and the Mantle began to wrestle control away where it could.  Soon, the two entities became indistinguishable from one another, and the more Anox used the Mantle to augment his magic, the more it took from his mortal body...but he could not die as long as it was bound to him.

Boss Fight: This fight was...problematic.  There was a spore lair with infectious actions, a whole one on one duel where the PCs made strange tactical decisions and then got mad when they didn't work out.  And this was already a difficult campaign to run; huge mix of experience levels and play styles clashing all over the place.  If I were to run this in the now, 4 years wiser, I'm confident it would have been earned.  Honestly, I was still cutting my teeth on this one.
    There were personal stakes with a PC, which, in any other case, would have made this much more charged - the end result here...was confusing.  Misinterpretations of rules and descriptions, intentions, and flow; it got pretty awkward at times.
  What I WANTED to happen was a dynamic battle of shifting landscapes and status effects, a ticking time bomb of spore growth, and a possible moral quandary of tearing the mantle free to destroy it or don it yourself.  Instead, it was a jumbled mess with a few great moments (I'll give that to my seasoned players), tarnished by that constant confusion or rules-lawyering.  Different group, different time I guess.

The Build: Druid 18 [Circle of Spores], Warlock 2 [Great Old One*]
  The Warlock element of this build required a lot of homebrew.  This Great Old One ends up being the Mantle itself, a semi-sentient immortal object (one of my "Legacy Artifacts") that has held many hosts before, and draws power equally from the Shadowfell and the Feywild.  It had regenerative properties, negated by radiant damage, and the Mantle has its own suite of innate daily spells - it could even cast additional spell effects by placing levels of Exhaustion on its user.  
  At the time, I wasn't confident with custom Legendary Actions, but a second go would simplify Anox's action economy to that of a standard druid, and the Mantle would act with Legendary Actions of its own, illustrating the dichotomy of the two entities joined.  I could then drop better hints as to the artifact's nature, and I would allow the PCs to attack the Mantle directly, adding a puzzle to this duel of fates.
  As it stands, Anox - and myself - learned a lot from this boss fight, and we haven't seen the last of his character.  Perhaps a new version will retcon the old for us all. 

Anywho.
It's important to look back now and again.  To consider where our lessons lie, and what new adventures we can craft with them in mind.  Maybe I'll do this again - I've got plenty stashed in the mental basement.

If you enjoyed this, maybe say so, or check out the Patreon (it could always use some love).  
Stay warm out there.
-Adamus

And that's all I can say for now.  Adults can make their own decisions as to the level of buzz they want to ride, and that changes from individual to individual, night to night.  The only things I can do is maintain my own control level, be consistent, and stay kind.  My players will sort themselves out as long as I keep a good table with clear expectations.  Speaking of which...

See you over there.
​-Adamus

It was only just May the 4th, and any nerd worth her salt knows what's up.  It seemed a no-brainer for me to run a very special kind of game, and in preparing it, and running it last night, I've made a few key observations on how it's changed over the years, how my style has changed, and how I prefer to run my games in this system.

There's no AC in this game.  Instead, enemies will be targeting one of three static defenses: Fortitude - your constitution and strength to resist poison and getting thrown around, Reflex - your dexterity and ability to dodge, feint, or parry, Will - your mental clarity and focus.  Now, in Pathfinder, these numbers would be bonuses to opposed checks against a Difficulty Class etc...  But Saga takes a page from 4th Edition and keeps these numbers as static defenses.  These are the numbers your enemies and you roll against to hit them and cause damage and debilitating effects, which is much faster and cleaner.
  Perception and Initiative can be treated as static as well (rolling in a clear "passive Perception"), but my players prefer rolling for Initiative for familiarity and that possibility of striking first.  Rolling with crazy bonuses IS fun, don't take them all away!

The Force operates in two big ways in Saga: in the form of Force Points (a D6 added to a roll) and Force Powers.  Jedi and other Force users collect powers in their Force Power Suite to wield within the world, slowly expanding the suite as they take Force Training (a Feat taken multiple times, based on your Wisdom).
  Now, as per Raw, the Powers you have count as one use of said power, and this is where I split from RAW and flow toward my own preferences.

+ The Powers in your suite are treated like spells known and prepared.  It tracks that a Force user that uses a Force Push would be able to push multiple times; they wouldn't forget how just because they already did it once.
+ Some Powers require the use of Force Points to work, while others can be augmented by the Force (using points), but most don't require burning them.  Your pool only increases and replenishes every LEVEL, so no.
+ Most Powers take a Swift action in combat.  I've seen Obi-Wan swing a lightsaber and shove a stack of droids in the same turn, so you guys can do it too.  Force Lightning, on the other hand, may take a little more oomph in the action economy (unless you're a certain skill level in the Sith traditions).

Destiny Points function much like inspiration, but I add a nice big D12 instead.  It's not *just* a re-roll, it's a possible value (you pick how you want to use it).

AND - Because my setting is in the Old Republic, when the Force is prevalent and surging, I added a mechanic to wonderful effect last night.  
  Your Force dice and Destiny die can Ace.  Acing is a mechanic utilized in games like Mekton, Deadlands, and the entirety of Savage Worlds (probably a ton of others, but those are the ones I know).  Anywho, if you roll the max number on a die, you roll again and add the two values together (Ace again?  Keep going and keep adding).  And because you can add a Force die to anything, a punch to the face might send someone through a wall...and isn't that awesome?

So, in short, Saga Edition functions like a streamlined D&D in space with laser swords and wizards.  
It was so good, and it reminded me why I liked this system so much and why I miss it so terribly.
Get ready for a resurrection - we've got more stories to tell.

See you at the table.
-Adamus

For all the math involved in Pathfinder, they certainly had their creative character concepts down.  
  When Vigilante dropped, where the player has a literal alter-ego to manage, I was getting excited.  When alternative classes were introduced, like the Antipaladin or the Samurai, I knew we were on to something special.  The third in the latter's introduction is the Ninja.  

The Ninja introduced an interesting concept (at more for me than the others).  Though it was an alternate class for the Rogue (makes sense), its progressive powers were an uneven split between Rogue and Monk through the introduction of Ki, with added Ninja flair in the form of Tricks.  This seemed to open the door for Pathfinder to introduce Hybrid Classes - classes inspired by and borrowing from two main core classes as "parent classes."
  One such that springs to mind for 5E conversion today is that of the Skald.

In Pathfinder, a Skald is a hybrid between the rage-filled Barbarian and the charismatic musical Bard.  A Skald wields music and rage together to bolster her allies with courage and mettle, and crush her enemies with doubt and fear.
  Now, when I present this idea in conversation in 5th Edition, I am too often met with the image of a half-orc barbarian picking up instruments he doesn't know how to play, playing them badly, then smashing them against foes (with the Brawler feat, to boot).  The image ends up being more like:

​Which I must admit, is pretty cool from what it looks like...  But the whole thing's often played for comedy only, unfortunately.  The awesome artistic rendition above serves well in a Battle of the Bards scenario, which is intended to be silly and over the top.

But this concept should be fueled by the power of both classes; not a bard who's bad at barding, or a barbarian who just happens to be (hilariously) a poet.  Take for example this image instead:

Now THAT'S a Skald.  A warrior who fuels their talent with rage and power, spreading that sonic force to its allies.  It fills them inspiration and power, not comedy at its absurdity (which still has its place in certain games, don't worry).  So how do we build this guy?

Something John and I discuss often when we try to build multi-class concepts is the problem of too broad a spectrum of necessary attributes in order to be effective, and this concept does not convert well out of the gate.  We've got three of six (arguably four if we're going strength) that will be essential to our build, and that's Dexterity, Constitution, and Charisma (duh).  Normally, I'd say Strength too, but we'll be spreading thin - we're going Dex Barbarian already.
Race: Tiefling (Charisma bump is nice, and I'm sick of the Half-Orc Barbarian trope)
  Standard Array: 15-14-13-12-10-8  
Welp.  You don't need to be smart to sing.
STR: 13
*DEX: 14
*CON: 15
INT: 9 (+1 Racial)
WIS: 10
CHA: 14 (+2 Racial)

This tweaks my nerves a little bit, as I often want one stat at its highest possible run as early as possible (my gut reaction is to put the base 15 in CHA, then +2, for a total of 17...but then we're left with slim pickings for our DEX and CON scores, and we need all three decent to make this work).  Not to mention we won't qualify for Barbarian multi-classing without at least a STR of 13.

This might feel tricky, but our taking a look at what we get up front makes this decision for us.
Barbarian First: Light and medium armor, shields, Simple and Martial weapons
Barbarian Second: Shields, Simple and Martial weapons
Bard First: Simple weapons, hand crossbows, longswords, rapiers, shortswords; THREE skills; THREE instruments
Bard Second: Light armor, ONE skill of your choice, ONE musical instrument

Now, take into account that by going into Barbarian later I STILL get unarmored defense, so as long as I have a Shield (which I will), I'm still fine.  Barbarians get all weapons regardless, so Bard makes sense up front for skill versatility and a plethora of instruments with which I can sing my wrath.

The most glaring issue up front here is the fact that you cannot cast spells or concentrate on spells while raging, but my solution is pretty simple: ready?  You can cast spells while raging, and you add your Rage damage to your spells (where applicable, like a spell that deals damage).  In order to do this, you must have at least 1 level in both Barbarian and Bard.

Instead of a brand new archetype, or building a new feat structure, sometimes a little flavor swap and rules switch is all you need.  This way, we still support the benefits of both classes.
  
Now, this build REQUIRES a home-brew allowance, which makes it contingent upon your DM's allowance, but since you're not delving into Unearthed Arcana territory, this feels very smooth.  And I don't feel that it is exploitive in any way.
Giant thanks to John Tanaka for helping me streamline my thought process on this one.  

More insanity on the way.
I'll see you at the table.
-Adamus

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Thursday D&D is now my oldest campaign.  Running since my inception into the Questers' Way model, they've been fighting cultists, talking to dragons, crushing beholders, and squaring off against Ancient Ones riding gargantuan titans for nearly 3 years now.  And last Thursday marked the close of the final arc of the story.  
  We'll have one last dungeon crawl at level 20, 5 years later, as our epilogue next week.  After that, 150 years pass into the fourth age of Io, and we start anew at Level 2.  It's been quite a journey, and they're not the easiest group to run ;), but the lessons are real with this crew and I've changed a lot since we started.  
Here's what I picked up.

When I started the Thursday game, I was coming off a blend of 10 years running and teaching Pathfinder, and though I fell in love quickly with 5E, I had made some assumptions regarding its player options.
  The system is deceptively simple and highly accessible, but I had listened to the cry-babies online declaring it "D&D Basic," and decided to create specific Prestige Classes based around lore and player discovery.  It created a very special and unique option inside my custom world, where "secret" classes actually existed that could augment player builds, and could only upgrade through experimentation, player exploration, and discovery into the deep layers of the world's history.  I still think it was a great decision.  It adds a lot of rewards for players that invest of themselves in the history and machinations of this fantasy you've spent so much time on.
  But after two years of deep-diving mechanics, game mastering, game design, player-master interaction, social development, and the study of flow...  I realize I made a boo-boo.  Not a mistake in flavor, nor in reward, but in mechanics.
It's a little thing, and the more you do the more you realize that "it's the little things" that matter most.  In this case, my Prestige Class of the Aegis - a powerhouse of a Cleric that wields the souls of the dead to unleash fury upon her enemies - and the final form of a Ranger with a Legacy Bow - a weapon that levels up with you; semi-sentient and created by a god - created an issue with Action Economy and TMRPA (Too Much Rolling Per Action), respectively.  
  The Aegis's main mechanic involves gaining Furies - souls of dead warriors unwilling to pass on - and spending them like Ki Points to unleash powerful attacks, augment healing spells, and create more options.  Unfortunately, as long as you have Furies to burn, there's no limit to their use, and at high level in any class, you're already managing so much...  It eats up time easy when you're able to summon an Action Surge every turn AND cast AND fight.  On the other side of the table, the crazy-bow-now-living-winged-armor attached to the Ranger added an extra attack, but the main time suck is derived from two main extra elements in play: the bow requires a Con save when it hits or the target takes extra necrotic damage.  It's also got a crazy bonus (with a high level character with max Dex), so hitting is often, mean more rolls for me.  On top of this, IF she rolls a natural 20 on the bow, she rolls Constitution damage on the target, on top of everything else.  Moving forward, leveled up weapons will deal static numbers, instead of rolling more...  And in terms of time, it always feels more effective in flow and execution to have a power spike (the awesome power of rolling 8d6 for a Fireball) than many small spikes of damage, so if I can eliminate the parceled rolls where I can, everyone still feels effective, but turns take less time.

In the fourth age, Io-Shar, though it is a more industrial time period of naval exploration (after the world flooded), home-brew materials are much tighter and more balanced; action economy manipulations have higher costs, and there's less compounded rolling.  The bonuses are also much more subtle; there isn't a need to add a whole new system to track when it could be as simple as a palette swap in damage type.  New age, new prestige classes and custom feats open up (hello, Knife Expert), but this play test has heavily informed what special elements are extended to the player.  A little goes a long way - there is an elegance in that design, and it keeps the playing field even across the table.
  I look forward to the interesting things I can give them this time around.  :)

NPC's can be tricky business.  
  Introduce them as careful lore drops, powerful relationships, killer resources...but never have them solve a problem for the players.  Good gods.  Holy cows on toast with mayonnaise.  Don't do it.  
NPC ex machina is not the way to go if it comes out of nowhere.
  Well-established order of guards and officers?  Sure thing.  Sudden mass teleport wizard is sudden.  If it feels like a puzzle to the players and they're enjoying solving it, don't help them with an NPC.  Hints are fine, solutions can hurt the party.  
​...Unless they're utterly lost and confused.  Help them along, but don't do it for them.  EVER.  If you do, you run the risk of insulting them and equally "playing without them."  And that's just rude.  ;)

Some players want their background conflicts resolved in the grand arc of the story, while others use their backgrounds predominantly to inform their play style from session 1 and need it no longer.  
  Now, this group in particular was one where I didn't get that feel easy from most of them.  With a high mix reactive players with a few proactive ones, some offering extensive background information while others offered a few sentences explained away, the hindsight of the matter is obvious but the player execution and my observations were misunderstood often.  When you give a hook that to you is obvious, but the player misses completely, and therefore doesn't pursue it, one might assume that the view of their background fits into the former category.
  Compounding confusion, still, are those that feed very little into the overall narrative, but then wonder when "their story" will be featured, but say nothing - instead assuming they were forgotten.  Please talk to your DM; I won't be offended - it's much worse if you don't approach the issue until the end of the campaign and I wonder why NO ONE SAID ANYTHING.  :)
Like many GMs out there, I'm not a *dick*, but I can't read minds.  There are so many stories of a player misinterpreting a DM's intention, or of the GM making an assumption about a scenario that ended up being incorrect, or seeming to ignore obvious intentions.  In the same vein of: "if I knew it was a problem, I would have fixed it right away," though we can intuit quite a bit the longer we're at the table, our human nature begs us to err.  We miss things, we get caught up in the narrative, and we lose sight of players.  I am imperfect, as are we all, so open communication helps everyone.  Also, GMs, CHECK IN WITH YOUR PLAYERS MORE.  I picked this up as a requirement when I started Gray Owls and OH MY GOODNESS is it an essential element at every table.  I don't know how it took me that long to put in my workflow OMG.  
Moving forward, with each new campaign, I've started to put together a few questions for character creation; some fulfill the essential detail of world building, while others touch on player intentions - what do they want to get out of this experience?

1. Where was your character born?  Describe it as best you can; do you reflect on this place positively or negatively?  Would you ever want to return?  Why?  Do you have a family there?  How did they treat you?  Were there any important people in your life growing up?  Why did you leave?
2. What is your character's goal in life; what do you seek?  When did you "grow up" and start taking care of yourself?
3. What emotion best describes your character?  What emotion do you bring out in others?
4. How do you carry yourself?  What are your means/dress/attitude as you move through life?  What do find valuable?
5. What is your comfort zone?  What is your greatest fear?  Personal tastes, quirks, and opinions?
6. Player: What kind of story do you see your character fitting into?  What role do you see them filling?
7. Player: Please weigh (3 being most important to you, 1 being least important) the Three Pillars - Combat/Social/Exploration
8. Player: How do you interpret your play style?  What are your pet peeves?  What do you respond well to?
9. Player: How do you want your character to die? (this is more important than you think; it strikes at the heart of our own values - your story could end abruptly, and if it did, how would they meet that end do you think?)
10. Player: Do you want your background details to be referenced or hooked into the story?  You can always change your mind - just let me know.

Now, especially number 10 I can see a few of my fellow GMs hemming and hawing over.  "You mean we have to bend over backwards to make this character's weird backstory fit into OUR GRAND NARRATIVE???  How dare they assume they'd be so important - they should be happy just to be playing!"  ...Hmm.  
  This is a group game, and it's really important that everyone understands the type of experience they're getting into.  Clear expectations are a good thing; Trust and Empathy are two main factors to building a great table of play.  Now, do I have to make that character's stuff the most important element all the time?  No.  Absolutely not.  But I can give them sprinkles of content more directly spun into the story.  It won't happen all the time, and sometimes it might not even come up, but IF I KNOW going into this that there is a clear desire to wrap up a specific story thread, I can find more ORGANIC ways to weave and tie these disparate threads together.  It might even be a limiter of location; hints of the conflict in the north (echoes of another character's story), but we don't need to go there now.  It's just a sprinkle.  
Everyone's connected to something.  Everyone's from somewhere.  We don't know everything going in; the mystery is the fun part, and some players want their mystery.  Others don't care for it; I need to know which one you are.

And when they do, their real play styles come out.  It's amazing what comfort will do for the table, and how much it reveals what a comfortable player actually WANTS to play, and if that concept doesn't jive with how their current class works, there will undoubtedly be a desire to play something different. 
  The more this group learned about how the game works, the more effective they became, but also the more some of them drifted toward other builds, concepts, and ideas.  This type of momentum is helpful to notice; in a way, it reveals a player's true nature.  Like the first campaign was our test run.  The next one is where we're going to really shine; players and DM alike.  We take what we learned about the game, ourselves, our styles, and how to advocate for the experience we want...and finally, just PLAY.

See you at the table.
-Adamus

Writing this blog each week takes time, energy, and focus.  If you enjoy reading it, maybe consider taking a look at my Patreon, and helping support its creation.

Every Game Master has their fair share of custom content and home-brew incorporation.  We add a mundane item here, a magic item there, pull from previous editions, or adapt from other mediums.  Hell, maybe we'll change the setting altogether; flip the script and play in the whimsical alternate dimension of: Milwaukee.

Whatever the case, each Game Master has their own house rules and a whole bevy of alternative items, mechanics, and elements ready to be created, discovered, and reinforced by their players...  
So I thought I'd talk about mine.

My setting of Io enjoys seven distinct settings, or Ages, in its interwoven timeline.  I did this originally to be able to offer an abundant mix of games inside the same system but with a progressive timeline.  What this created was a beast of internal consistency, where the actions of a party of adventurers on Tuesday could potentially affect the world experienced on Wednesdays, and the actions of the Knight Owls could have echoes in the Gray Owls campaign.  I was careful to allow a large enough passage of time to avoid any weirdness, but the extra-meta knowledge of players in multiple campaigns has been pretty cool.  
  What it's also done is allowed me to create a literal progression of industry from age to age, unlocking special race, class, and item options setting to setting - all of which have lore and reasoning implications.  ...Like how the heck Illithids (literal Mind Flayers) became a playable race in the 6th age of Io-Firma (the Gray Owls setting).  So here's a quick overview of how each Age functions and what type of setting it offers.

The NEXUS: where all creation began - the world and its gods came into being in the Nexus, where the raw energy found in its core flowed through the planet and forged the elemental forces.  Many believe it still exists to this day, somewhere far beyond the planar circle yet intimately close - like a door waiting to be opened.  The details of its location have been lost to antiquity, a single remnant referred to only as The Song Of The Ancients.
Io-Temm: The Worldshaping - The first age of Io, where the Seven Wings birthed the now known pantheon and their inevitable war that shaped the main continent of Erena, the disparate islands of Abaddon, and the kingdoms beyond the Aether.  
Io-Sooth: Mortal's Edge - Classic D&D fantasy setting; the second age entertains the birth of the mortal races, created by the first known pantheon.  Tiamat and Bahamut - Dragonborn; Pelor - Humans; Morahdin - Dwarves; Corellon - Elves; you get the idea... 
Io-Ren: Balance and Ruin - The flames of industry have begun to burn and the mortal races try to harness the power of the gods, ushering in an age of demigods, exploration, and tempting fate.  Campaigns: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Knight Owls Season 1
Io-Shar: The Broken Seas - After a cataclysmic event involving an ancient being ripping a hole in the plane of Water, the world has flooded and expanded into an age of naval piracy, massive sea creatures, and temporal storms.  Campaigns: Wednesdays, Knight Owls Season 2, Knight Owls Season 3.
Io-Empyr: Cloudsinger - After a sky pirate and his merry band pierced the Veil Of Heaven, cities rose into the sky, forming Clusters of new nations and expanding the world further.  Steampunk airships, sky pirates, and tears in the threads of the Feywild and Shadowfell summon a whole new caste of creatures and entities that threaten to take the sky for their own.  Campaigns: Cloudsinger (YouTube)
Io-Firma: The Reclamation - Magic is broken.  A Prime God is dead.  The world is dark and deadly and cold.  Shattered psions, enlightened gnolls, ancient detectives, hired guns, and mature themes, this is not an age of heroes.  No, this world is just a tad...gray.  Campaigns: Gray Owls (21+)
Io-Nixx: The Sundering - Not much is known of this age, as only one adventuring party has caught a glimpse of it.  It is a battle; constant and enormous, where literal gods clash in the skies.  It may even mark the end of the world as we know it.

So, depending on the age, we can assume that certain gear is available as industry increases.  Sooth and Ren are pretty similar, but Ren's adventurers begin to discover the powerful Legacy Weapons from Temm (the first age), tapping into the power of the gods before the turn of the age.  Cataclysm changes things in Shar, and the world adapts; ships, naval warfare, cannons, spell cannons, automated ships, subs - Outlaw Star style ship combat.  Empire allows more steampunk gunslinging, taking the naval concepts to the air at the peak of an industrial revolution.  Then Firma comes along and everything breaks, and it breaks hard; whole classes are gone, or changed dramatically; races disappear, others resurface with new abilities, and no one truly knows how the world works anymore - with magic mostly illegal for the lower class, now we've got to find other ways to get it (drugs, I'm talking about magic drugs).
  So without going into too much detail with the various Ages, the following are *mostly* available in all of my games.

  I like to employ all that the Player's Handbook has to offer for 5E, but sometimes I draw some extra inspiration from my Pathfinder days (extensive weapon lists), and add on a little extra blades for good measure.  None of these are Masterwork (so no +1's, or cutting through resistances), but there might be some other cool perks.  I've always been a fan of incorporating more martial arts weaponry (given my own background), and like utilizing die steps to help illustrate a power increase.  Also-also, not everything is available at every shop.  These custom mundane items, along with other items, might fluctuate depending on supply, demand, harvest, and other such factors age to age.  Again, lore and reasoning for the world.  The mass production of Duskweave in the third age led to a near extinction of the Displacer Beast packs, and no one's heard of a Pack Lord in eons.  Whoops.

  WEAPONS
Claymore - adapted greatsword; 2d8 Slashing - Two-Handed, Heavy
Katana - adapted longsword; 1d8/1d10 Slashing - Versatile, Finesse, Monk
Wakizashi - reskinned Scimiar; 1d6 Slashing - Finesse, Monk, Light
Chain Maul - 2d6 bludgeoning - reach, thrown, grapple from 10 feet
Chakram - 1d6 slashing - thrown (10/30)
Gauntlet Blade, Retractable -  1d8 slashing - 4 lbs. - concealed, retractable (Shar+)
Monolith - 1d12/2d6 slashing - Versatile 
Naginata - 1d8 slashing - reach, heavy, two-handed, brace
Tonfa - 1d6 bludgeoning - AC +1, Light, Monk
Sai - 1d4 bludgeoning - Light, Monk, Disarm on critical 
​Nunchaku - 1d6 bludgeoning - Light, Monk, x3 on critical

  ARMOR
Plated Robes (not armor) - AC = 11 + Dex Modifier
Duskweave Leather - AC = 13 + Dex Modifier, Light Armor
Ironwood Scale Mail - AC = 14 + Dex Modifier (max 2) - Disadvantage Stealth - 35 lbs.
Elderwood Scale Mail - AC = 15 + Dex Modifier (max 2), Medium Armor
Ballistic Duskweave Doublet - AC = 14 + Dex Modifier, Medium Armor
Dragon Plate (specific materials required - AC = 18 w/resistance to the element associated with the dragon scales used

  SHIELDS (I treat shields as weapons.  Direct reference to my Pathfinder sword and boarding, so there you go)
Buckler - 5 gp - AC +1 - 3 lbs.
Constructivist Shield - 65 gp - AC +1 - 4 lbs. - Can be used as a reaction to raise your AC.  Does not occupy a hand.
Round Shield, Light - 15 gp - AC +2 - 6 lbs. - Bash 1d4
Round Shield, Heavy - 30 gp - AC +2 - 10 lbs. - Bash 1d6
Tower Shield - 100 gp - AC +3 - STR 17 required - Disadvantage Stealth - 20 lbs. - Bash 1d8

  Duskweave = made from Displacer Beast pelts, and thus has a smoky dispersal that shifts and moves as the armor moves.

  Now, many of these additions are lifted from my Knight Owls Armory, but if you don't normally venture over there, you'd never see them.  So here they are anyway for your consideration.

Alchemy and Herbalism, especially as it pertains to potion making as a pursuit, has really come to fruition in Io-Shar, where my industry-heavy players reside.  They crave that personal control of their universe, and I LOVE IT.

So, potion-making in Io borrows from Skyrim, The Witcher, and my own head, as well as a blend of other home-brew resources dotting the landscape of Reddit, DM's Guild, and the Open-Gaming License.  All that being said, let's run it down a bit.

In Io, there are a large number of known ingredients that create specific effects in the brewing process, while others might augment or dilute others.  Bloodgrass, for example, can be used to add an additional 1d4 to the healing amount for a healing potion you are brewing, but Rubygrass (grown in the Feywild), will actually REMOVE a d4 from the healing (the taste is sharp and difficult to swallow).  So we use Herbalism to "enhance" the potion.  We call them Enhancements.  Some can cancel each other out, while others augment the effects.
  Then, there are ingredients that we actually derive the Enchantment from.  We treat them as our Core.  The intended potion effect.  Like using Void Root to brew a Potion of Flying.  
  Finally, we need a Base.  The liquid that we'll be using.  Some potions can be brewed in water, while others require Holy Water as their Base, or Salt Water, or Liquor.  Specific liquids may also imbue the potion with specific properties.  
So, if I want to brew a Healing Potion, I need at least a Base and a Core.  
Base: Water.  Core: Cherrymoss Extract.  Then 3 hours.  
If we want, we can mix in some Ground Ephedrana to increase the die step of the healing potion from 2d4 to 2d6.  Finish the brew and you've got a "boosted" healing potion that heals 2d6+2 hit points.

And that's one potion.  Booyah.
....Experimenting with all of this is going to be A LOT of FUN.

So there's a lot going on, and I haven't even talked about the Prestige Classes or the Legacy Weapons (they're coming, don't worry), but this post has gone on long enough, and hopefully it clears up any confusion from looking at the lists from the Knight Owls armory moving forward.  :)

See you at the table.
-Adamus

  So.  There's a thing that happened on the stream.  
The characters are Level 2 at the moment - very close to their next milestone - trudging through the sewer system under a reservoir, when they happened upon a dangerous creature.  
This creature is pretty nasty, and going toe-to-toe with it in such a tight space proved to be devastating in regard to hit points, especially when it rolled a natural 20 and hit the mage for well over her maximum hit points...

The PHB is very clear on how instant death works, and I admit that in my 3+ years of professional DMing...it has NEVER come up.  So of course, online, in front of a live audience, it does.

MY RULE for insta-death is as follows: a character is instantly killed is they are pushed to negative twice their maximum hit points in a single attack.  This means that a character with 14 hit points as their maximum has to be hit into the negative by 28 or more hit points in order to die instantly.  This ruling has always been there, but this was the first time it came into effect, and though it SAVED the mage, it still left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth.

  The reason I altered things was to help safeguard early characters, but I try to balance it with my death DCs rising and requiring rolls and skill tests in order to resurrect a character (it gets harder every time).  BUT maybe it was the live show that brought it all into perspective.
  The player was alright with it (her dying, that is), but it was going against my original ruling - that no one was actually aware of in the first place.  Revealing it looks like a cop-out, even though it's always been that way, but now that it's out there...  I am taking a hard look at it.

After contemplating and discussing this topic with several parties, and thinking on it myself - especially after learning so much about game systems over the last 7 years - I see no real need to hold onto that rule.  So to be clear, this will be how I rule Instant Death, and how I always rule anything that resurrects characters.

DEATH MATTERS 
Save DC Increase: Each time you die (three saves failed or instantly killed), and are successfully brought back to life, there is a consequence.  This is represented by an increase in your Death Save DC.  It increases by 1 every time you die and come back (this includes the spell Reincarnate, btw).  So, a character that has been killed and brought back successfully must now roll an 11 or higher on their death saves for a success, as opposed to the standard 10 or higher.  Die twice?  12 or higher.  And so on.  There is a consequence to you dying; it is now harder to cling to life.

Resurrection Skill Challenge: bringing a character's soul back to their body is an involved and powerful process.  As such, I require a Skill Challenge for a Resurrection spell.  The bigger the spell, the more involved the challenge.  A spell like Revivify requires only one roll with a DC equal to the character's current Death DC.  
​  A spell like Resurrection is an hour-long process with characters finding ways to pull their friend back to the land of the living.  It's an opportunity to immerse yourself in the relationships in your party, and find meaning in bringing them back.  I ask for three "offerings."  These are creative interactions; whatever the player character deems as a way to usher the entity back to the land of the living.  Players have prepared poems, potions, offered a childhood toy, grown a tree - whatever you like.  How you present it can help a lot.  Then I pick an appropriate attribute or skill and you roll against that same Death DC.  A success brings down the final roll (me) DC by 1.  A critical success drops it by 2.  Conversely, failures and critical failures increase the DC by the same amounts.  When all three offerings are finished, I do a straight roll against the adjusted DC (based on the offerings' successes or failures) and we see if the soul was ushered back to the body.  So far, I have run 8 total rituals in this way, and 3 Revivify quick rolls.  Only 1 has been unsuccessful, but 2 others were within 2 points of failure.  It's great role-playing; and sometimes, creatures just die, and that's okay.

DEATH CAN COME AT ANY TIME
Moving forward, you're dead outright if you are pushed to negative your maximum hit points, just like in the PHB.

As for our little gnome friend in Cloudsinger...she's still alive.  But her Death DC just went up by 1.  That's the balance.  :)

Happy gaming.
I'll see you at the table.
-Adamus

  Back from vacay, ladies and gents, and I've been catching up on John's videos, and our Game On! content that I missed, and the whole process got me thinking.  
  There have been a few rules that I have adjusted in my games.  Some to add flavor, others to streamline, and a few to add flair to an encounter or a creature.  So I'd like to present those to you, complete with what it actually says in the book (if anything), what previous editions might have ruled, what I rule, and why.  This way, peeps have a better idea on what to expect in my own games.  
  Let's get started. 

ME: when a creature drops to 0 Hit Points, they fall unconscious.  If struck by another blow in this situation (being at 0 Hit Points and otherwise helpless), the character loses 2 death saving throws automatically, as if being struck by a critical hit, dubbed "auto-crit."  This occurs even if the attack is beyond 5 feet away.
Book: "If you take any damage while you have 0 hit points, you suffer a death saving throw failure. If the damage is from a critical hit, you suffer two failures instead. If the damage equals or exceeds your hit point maximum, you suffer instant death."
  Subnote regarding Conditions: "Unconscious [...].  Any attack that hits the creature is a critical hit if the attacker is within 5 feet of the creature."
​Why: When working with intelligent tacticians, a creature at 0 HP is an easy target.  You are helpless, and those that have the capability to notice the overall strength of a party - or have witnessed your healing capabilities - know that it would be unwise to ignore you just because you fell over.  This mentality, coupled with the fact that you are HELPLESS before them in that moment, deems many creatures the ability to auto-crit on your lifeless form, forcing you to lose 2 death saving throws.  This is less a custom ruling, and more an adjustment of the capabilities of certain creatures.  A mindless grunt won't take notice, but a seasoned sword fighter would, and would probably take advantage of such a situation.  I call this feature Twisting The Knife, and intelligent creatures above a certain CR will often have it.  
  But why, though?  Dangerous entities should remain dangerous, and going toe-to-toe with something dangerous is risky.  This ability adds dynamic stress to a situation when someone goes down, and it also offers opportunities for villains to do more than just wipe out a party.  They can force ultimatums, draw their blades toward the party's cleric and force them to back down, lest they decide to end her life then and there.  It can create a Change Of Circumstance, and can further alter the battlefield.  These kinds of moments can define an encounter, and those are the things I love.  Building interesting encounters with dynamic foes.  

ME: when you score a critical hit, I have you roll all relevant dice involved in the attack (including Sneak Attack, Smite, and the like) BEFORE adding modifiers.  Then, total that number and multiply it by 2.  After that, add on your relevant modifiers.
Book: "When you score a critical hit, you get to roll extra dice for the attack's damage against the target. Roll all of theattack's damage dice twice and add them together. Then add any relevant modifiers as normal. To speed up play, you can roll all the damage dice at once."
​Why: I first saw this practice adopted by Matthew Mercer of Critical Role, and it seemed to really speed things up.  As cool as it is to roll a literal mountain of dice (which is what we Wizards LIVE for), the associated math can often bog down play in intense situations. So instead, I have peeps roll the appropriate dice involved, double the total, then add on modifiers.  This also allows me to grant opportunities to the players to further multiply their damage with my custom Assets, special weapons that harken back to Pathfinder (where swords grant a x2 critical, with critical on 19-20; while most axes only crit on 20s, but offer a x3 multiplier), situational bonuses, and great ways to communicate a creature's weaknesses (oh, that creature is weak against Psychic damage...we'll just double that number now).   ;)

  And there you have it.  Five ways that I like to augment my games.  As these are custom rules, they may change, but they've gone through some rigorous testing and I'm pretty pleased.  What custom rules do you use in your games?  I'd love to know.

Till next time, friends.  Hope to see you at the table.
​-Adamus