NewbieDM Review: Dungeon Magazine 171

October 29, 2009
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7

Before I get to the review of the magazine, let me point out why I’m choosing to review Dungeon Magazine now. It occurred to me that I wasn’t seeing any reviews of this magazine (or Dragon) on any of the blogs that I typically read. If I’m wrong, please correct me, so I may add […]

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Posted in: 4e D&D, Gaming

Pre-Campaign Player Questionnaire

October 28, 2009
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7

Many times, we as DM’s do not have the luxury of playing with a group of people we’ve know for a long time and are comfortable with.  I happen to have that luxury, playing with a group I’ve known and have been friends with for over 20 years in some cases, and haven’t had to […]

Posted in: 4e D&D, DM Tools, Gaming

NewbieDM Review: Kobold Quarterly 11

October 24, 2009
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12

I had a chance to read Kobold Quarterly, a D&D magazine believed by many to be the spiritual successor to Dragon Magazine (in its print version pre-4th Ed.) and I can see why that is.  It is a nicely put together mag with tons of D&D content, whether you’re playing 3.x, Pathfinder or my system […]

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Warstories: Player vs. Player at the table.

October 22, 2009
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31

This is the third installment of a series titled Warstories, which consists of short post meant to inspire discussion and dialogue amongst DM’s.  Warstories deal with the many different issues that come up in a D&D game from time to time, and tend to affect Dungeon Masters in particular. I had an unfortunate situation to […]

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Posted in: 4e D&D, Advice/Tools, Gaming

NewbieDM Review: Sinister Woods Dungeon Tiles

October 22, 2009
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10

I’m a huge fan of Dungeon Tiles, as I feel that they open up creativity that maybe wasn’t there before as you build your maps.  I don’t necessarily feel that every encounter area deserves to be plotted out with multiple tile sets, but certainly you can devote the big fight of the night or a […]

Posted in: 4e D&D, DM Tools, Gaming

1d12 Questions with 4e cartographer Mike Schley

October 20, 2009
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6

If you’ve played any of the published adventures in 4th Ed. D&D, then you are familiar with the work of Mike Schley.  In my opinion, Mike’s visual style is very closely tied to the overall palette of 4th Ed. and clearly WOTC feels the same way as his work is a part of many of […]

Posted in: 4e D&D, Gaming

Warstories: Large battle maps

October 16, 2009
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29

Warstories is the name I’m giving to a short series of articles meant to spark discussions and advice amongst DM’s and players.  With the series, I hope to tackle common problems that crop up during the game, and see how other people deal with them at their table.  This is the second of such articles. […]

Posted in: Advice/Tools, Gaming

Calling the DM Hotline

October 8, 2009
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4

When I first heard about the DM hotline, I thought it was a joke.  I mean, really, operators are standing by to answer your DMing questions?  But it wasn’t a joke, and it wasn’t lame, it was actually pretty cool. The DM Hotline, operated by the folks at Wizards of the Coast will run from […]

Posted in: 4e D&D, Gaming

Warstories: Second-guessing the DM

October 8, 2009
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34

“Warstories” is the name I’m giving to a series of short, quick articles that I want to do that involve DM’s sharing exactly that:  warstories from around the table.  I see it as an avenue for griping and venting and as a way to share solutions and answers to little things that may creep up […]

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Posted in: Gaming

The Library of the Ancients – A 3d Dungeon Tiles Map

October 7, 2009
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41

As I wrote about a few days ago, I plan on running the last major encounter of the heroic tier in my home campaign with a bit of 3d thrown in for good measure.  Here now is the map of the Library of the Ancients in the City of Rahesh, based on the article in […]

Posted in: 4e D&D, Gaming