Thought Eater Podcast: Top Three Tuesday: Game Mechanics, Fave Blogs, and Bucket List Campaigns

Tuesdays on the Thought Eater podcast I present my top three choices on a variety of gaming subjects. I had some great suggestions from listeners this week, including my favorite game mechanics and favorite blogs. I also reveal my campaign "bucket list". Click the link below to find out what made the cut!

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN!!!

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Thought Eater Podcast: Night Below Session Recap 5.5.19

Join me for my latest Sunday podcast recounting tales from my Night Below 1e AD&D/BX campaign.

Last night's session led me to muse about the wonder...and tragedy...of random tables, as well as one mechanic that may provide the sharpest contrast between old-school and new-school play. Oh, and the party encountered what has to be Gygax's laziest monster creation of all time.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN!

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Free and Pay-What-You-Want 5e DMs Guild Highlights: Week Ending 5.4.19

Every week, talented creators upload products to the DMs Guild, pricing them as free or pay-what-you-want in order to reach customers. Dozens of new free and pwyw products are added each week alone. It is a lot to sort through. My hope is that highlighting a few of each week's best supplements will help the designers get the attention they deserve.

You can find previous posts in this series HERE.


Feats for Ravnicans from T.R. Appleton

One of the cool things about the DMs Guild is all of the support you find for official releases. These 16 new feats all relate to guild memberships or the races from the Ravnica book. 


The Big Book of Rogues from Matt Harris

This is a really nice, very substantial (88 pages!) sourcebook for rogues. This isn't heavy on mechanics, but it contains a TON of flavor and very good background information. With sections on everything from thief gadgets to assassination missions, DMs and players alike are sure to find something of interest here for their aspiring grifters, forgers, and smugglers.


The Mage's Tower from Andrea Maffia

It can be a little intimidating preparing to run a game of D&D for the first time. Short adventures with rules reminders and tips can really help someone get started. Written entirely for new DMs and players, this one-session introductory adventure also contains some pregens to help you get up and rolling as soon as possible.


Nine Treasures from Harrison Swift

Nine highly unusual magic items, such as the pumpkin cape, which allows you to...well, to turn into a pumpkin. Very original. 

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Thought Eater Podcast: Five Minute Fridays: Unknown Clones

Today I bring you part three in my series on "unknown clones", OSR games that kind of flew under the radar. Today's game: Hulks and Horrors by John Berry for Bedroom Wall Press.

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This is actually a great little sci-fi game based on classic D&D mechanics. I really enjoyed the mix of hardish sci-fi and gonzo. There was an attempt to crowdfund some art a while back, but it was unsuccessful, so this is a no-frills pdf. There are still a ton of great ideas here and it is well worth a look.

Image from the crowdfunding attempt

Download it here: HULKS AND HORRORS
More doo-dads for it here: http://www.bedroomwallpress.com/p/downloads.html

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Humpday Blog-O-Rama 5.1.19

Blogs are an integral, vital part of the RPG hobby. They serve as incubators for new games, sounding boards for fresh ideas, and platforms for up-and-coming talent. They keep "forgotten" games alive, foster discussions, and build communities. Not everyone can work for a big game company, command a large audience on Twitch, or make a living from their art or cartography, but every RPG enthusiast can easily create a blog and start sharing their passion with the world.

Every Wednesday on the Thought Eater podcast and blog, I take a look at what is going on in the vibrant RPG blog scene. Check out previous Humpday Blog-O-Rama posts HERE.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THIS WEEK'S EPISODE!


LINKS FROM THIS WEEK'S EPISODE


MAPS

https://jhmrad.com/22-amazing-medieval-castle-house-plans/medieval-castle-floor-plan-lower-plans/

https://monkeyblooddesign.co.uk/2019/04/25/hidden-chapel-of-thoolk-map/

https://dungeonfantastic.blogspot.com/2019/04/dcc-lankhmar-poster-map.html



DIY MAPPING

https://www.frugalgm.com/2019/04/free-gm-resource-inkarnate.html


http://thestoryteller.design/2019/04/24/tutorial-how-to-draw-a-fantasy-village-map/



MUST-BACK KICKSTARTER

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/trilemma/trilemma-adventures-compendium/

REVIEWS AND RETROSPECTIVES

https://rlyehreviews.blogspot.com/2019/04/mutants-masterminds-basics.html

https://philgamer.wordpress.com/2018/08/13/lets-study-warhammer-fantasy-roleplay-4e-part-1-introduction/

http://samwise7rpg.blogspot.com/2019/04/villains-of-undercity-rpg-adventure.html

https://cannibalhalflinggaming.com/2019/04/26/aberrant-a-forgotten-superhero-rpg-worth-remembering/

https://dmdavid.com/tag/in-1981-a-troll-named-grimtooth-set-a-path-for-todays-dd-books/

https://gdorn.circuitlocution.com/rpgblog/history_of_xp.html



PLEASURES OF THE OSR SERIES

http://maziriansgarden.blogspot.com/2019/04/pleasures-of-osr-secrecy-and-discovery.html

http://maziriansgarden.blogspot.com/2019/04/pleasures-of-osr-emergent-story-and.html



HA'PENNY PIE

https://fasagames.com/hapenny-pie-archive/



RANDOM TABLES AND GENERATORS

http://dreamsandfevers.blogspot.com/2019/04/treasures-from-vault-d20-magic-items.html

https://goodberrymonthly.blogspot.com/2019/04/what-happened-this-semester.html

http://blog.d4caltrops.com/2019/04/five-more-forest-hexes.html



VARIANTS

https://daimon-games.blogspot.com/2019/04/combat-bring-escalation-die-to-osr.html

https://daimon-games.blogspot.com/2019/04/combat-initiative.html

https://thethingswedoforxp.blogspot.com/2019/04/slightly-subtler-necromancy.html



SCI-FI ZINES

http://frontierexplorer.org/article/issue-24-now-available

https://www.freelancetraveller.com/magazine/

THE GRASS IS ALWAYS GREENER

https://crumblingkeep.com/2850/crumbling-upkeep-grinding-through-after-the-honeymoon-period/

https://anchor.fm/Thedicearescreaming/episodes/Episode-71-One-Night-Stands--Mini-Campaigns-e3igo3


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Thought Eater Podcast: Top Three Tuesdays: Dice, Game Food, and Gygaxy Terms

It is Tuesday, so I am back with more RPG-related top three lists on the Thought Eater podcast!

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN!

Here are the links mentioned in today's episode:

http://www.newbigdragon.com/

http://grognardia.blogspot.com/2009/02/high-gygaxian.html

http://phrontistery.info/disq6.html

If you enjoy my free zine, podcast, and/or blog, please consider supporting my work for only $1 per month. 

Thought Eater Podcast: Night Below Session Recap 4.28.19

Last night's Night Below campaign session had a little bit of everything! Level drain! Renal failure! Human jerky! Wholesome fun! Hear what happened on the Thought Eater podcast!

 CLICK HERE TO LISTEN!

                          

If you enjoy my free zine, podcast, and/or blog, please consider supporting my work for only $1 per month. 

Free and Pay-What-You-Want 5e DMs Guild Highlights: Week Ending 4.27.19

Every week, talented creators upload products to the DMs Guild, pricing them as free or pay-what-you-want in order to reach customers. Dozens of new free and pwyw products are added each week alone. It is a lot to sort through. My hope is that highlighting a few of each week's best supplements will help the designers get the attention they deserve.

You can find previous posts in this series HERE.


20d8 Ways to Modify Monsters from Vincent Kitali

Oooh, this is handy. Have your players memorized the Monster Manual? Then be sure and check out this guide on how to keep them off-balance. Includes some sample modified monsters. 


The Compendium of Odd Creatures from B5 Homebrews and The Adventuring Guild

Speaking of keeping your players off-balance...how about a giant goat? Or a wishing well that twists wishes into something grotesque? This supplement provides 22 highly unusual and creative creatures to challenge players that have seen it all. 


Arcane Incantations from Damian Steele

Holy moly! Over 800 4e arcane powers converted to 5e! I really enjoyed this. 4e is just sitting there, ready to be pilfered for content, and this was a great way to do it. And over 800! Seriously?


Warlock Eldritch Invocations List from Michael O'Connor aka ThinkDM

Another handy-dandy utility sheet from the ThinkDM. Includes material from the PHB and Xanathar's Guide. 


100 Non-Combat Random Encounters (Coastal) from Dungeons and Djinn

Dungeons and Djinn have quietly put together a wonderful array of system-neutral random tables. The coastal flavor here could prove helpful if you plan to spend the coming months in Saltmarsh. 


If you enjoy my free zine, podcast, and/or blog, please consider supporting my work for only $1 per month. 

Thought Eater Podcast: Five Minute Friday: Willy the Wizard and the Moathouse of Hommlet

Join my daughter and I for our latest short and silly podcast featuring characters from our campaign. Willy the hard-of-hearing wizard and brave Elizabeth descend into the depths of the moathouse outside Hommlet.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN!

How about that awesome map from Colin Green of Spikepit!

If you enjoy my free zine, podcast, and/or blog, please consider supporting my work for only $1 per month. 

Humpday Blog-O-Rama 4.24.19

Blogs are an integral, vital part of the RPG hobby. They serve as incubators for new games, sounding boards for fresh ideas, and platforms for up-and-coming talent. They keep "forgotten" games alive, foster discussions, and build communities. Not everyone can work for a big game company, command a large audience on Twitch, or make a living from their art or cartography, but every RPG enthusiast can easily create a blog and start sharing their passion with the world.

Every Wednesday on the Thought Eater podcast and blog, I take a look at what is going on in the vibrant RPG blog scene. Check out previous Humpday Blog-O-Rama posts HERE.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THIS WEEK'S EPISODE!


MAPS

https://dysonlogos.blog/2019/04/23/2019-geomorphs-dice/

https://thevintagedm.blogspot.com/

http://kelvingreen.blogspot.com/2019/04/homage-to-barovia.html

https://bruce-heard.blogspot.com/2019/04/MapDesign.html



REVIEWS

https://theindierpgpipeline.blogspot.com/2019/04/mall-kids.html

http://punverse.blogspot.com/2019/04/movie-night-review.html

https://archons-court.blogspot.com/2019/04/review-some-glog-likes-why-not-rat-on.html

https://princeofnothingblogs.wordpress.com/2019/04/22/review-the-punchline-lotfp-last-laugh/

https://rollingboxcars.com/2019/04/17/onward-to-rome-a-review-of-7th-edition-guide-to-cthulhu-invictus/



WORMY

https://originaleditionfantasy.blogspot.com/2019/04/read-wormy-from-first-to-last.html

https://sites.google.com/site/wormycollected/Home/dragon-issue-9



D&D IS SUPER-POPULAR

https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/how-dungeons-and-dragons-somehow-became-more-popular-than-ever/2019/04/18/fc226f56-5f8f-11e9-9412-daf3d2e67c6d_story.html

https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/9D7E0086-7547-4726-B258-E086D36914C3

https://crumblingkeep.com/2683/dungeons-and-dragons-in-your-office/

http://greyhawkery.blogspot.com/2019/04/old-d-commercials.html



RANDOM TABLES

https://signsinthewilderness.blogspot.com/2019/04/the-great-migration.html

https://engineoforacles.wordpress.com/2019/04/18/random-18th-century-villages-for-a-gothic-sandbox/

https://crateredland.blogspot.com/2019/04/movers-and-shakers.html

http://whosemeasure.blogspot.com/2019/04/some-magic-weapons-d10-plucked-organs.html



HELPFUL LINKS

http://killitwithfirerpg.blogspot.com/2019/04/dccrpg-faq-and-links.html

http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2019/04/the-holmes-basic-g-archive.html



MISCELLANY

https://originaldungeons-and-dragons.blogspot.com/2019/04/celebrating-blackmoor-campaign-day.html

https://3toadstools.blogspot.com/2019/04/update-on-tenmonstersetting.html

http://crookedstaff.blogspot.com/2019/04/make-your-own-chests-crates.html

https://thealexandrian.net/wordpress/42965/roleplaying-games/left-hand-of-mythos-a-trail-of-cthulhu-scenario



THE SWEET SPOT

https://crossingtheverse.wpcomstaging.com/2019/04/16/on-the-not-superhero/


If you enjoy my free zine, podcast, and/or blog, please consider supporting my work for only $1 per month.