Ray and Ariel discuss how to make a villain that your characters will care about—specifically care about killing them ASAP. This episode covers a classic screenwriting technique called "Kick the Dog" which establishes the bad guy by having them hurt a helpless character in the world.  Ray and Ariel review two great examples of Dog Kicking from the new One Piece series and the Disney Classic, The Emperor's new groove. Both masterclasses in establishing characters you want to punch right in the jaw.   Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery's Physical Copy: https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/397328/Emerys-Log-of-Legendary-Eminences Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel discuss how to make a villain that your characters will care about—specifically care about killing them ASAP. This episode covers a classic screenwriting technique called "Kick the Dog" which establishes the bad guy by having them hurt a helpless character in the world. Ray and Ariel review two great examples of Dog Kicking from the new One Piece series and the Disney Classic, The Emperor's new groove. Both masterclasses in establishing characters you want to punch right in the jaw. Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery's Physical Copy: <a href="https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/397328/Emerys-Log-of-Legendary-Eminences" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/397328/Emerys-Log-of-Legendary-Eminences</a> Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

Kick The Dog | A Guide To Dastardly Villains

Ray and Ariel discuss the different categories of sentient magic items that appear in popular fiction and Dungeons and Dragons.  From Nightblood to the One Ring, we deconstruct their sentience so that you can use the pieces to build your own items at your own tables.  Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel discuss the different categories of sentient magic items that appear in popular fiction and Dungeons and Dragons. From Nightblood to the One Ring, we deconstruct their sentience so that you can use the pieces to build your own items at your own tables. Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

Sentient Magic Items | Sapient VS Awakened Vs Alien

Ray and Ariel discuss Ariel's homebrew class he first played seven(!) years ago that is in its final stages before publishing to the DMSGuild. The Medium is a fortune-telling, multi-verse traveling class for 5th edition inspired by all kinds of plane-shifting experiences from Stranger Things to Everything Everywhere All at Once. Ray and Ariel go over the process of homebrewing, the core functions of the class, and how core DnD classes don't always offer the same things that you can find in homebrew material.  Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel discuss Ariel's homebrew class he first played seven(!) years ago that is in its final stages before publishing to the DMSGuild. The Medium is a fortune-telling, multi-verse traveling class for 5th edition inspired by all kinds of plane-shifting experiences from Stranger Things to Everything Everywhere All at Once. Ray and Ariel go over the process of homebrewing, the core functions of the class, and how core DnD classes don't always offer the same things that you can find in homebrew material. Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

The Medium | Previewing Ariel's Class for the Planescape

Ray and Ariel have a more casual conversation this episode discussing the playtest Ray ran for the Emery's kickstarter stretch goal, featuring Za'ul the Lich King. They discuss what to prioritize for a major boss battle, and how to inject some new mechanics into minion fights with Za'ul's magical golems as examples. Ray and Ariel also tease the next episode where they will be reviewing Ariel's push-your-luck style homebrew class, which (he promises) will finally be ready for publishing.  Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel have a more casual conversation this episode discussing the playtest Ray ran for the Emery's kickstarter stretch goal, featuring Za'ul the Lich King. They discuss what to prioritize for a major boss battle, and how to inject some new mechanics into minion fights with Za'ul's magical golems as examples. Ray and Ariel also tease the next episode where they will be reviewing Ariel's push-your-luck style homebrew class, which (he promises) will finally be ready for publishing. Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

Playtesting a Boss Battle

Ray and Ariel provide mechanics that address specific criticisms they made of 5e in the previous episode. Here are some short rules that will...  Prompt players to choose between a more diverse set of weapons Inspire new rivalries between different types of spellcasters Help you to present more varied loot and rewards to your players.  Three design tools modern games use to make interesting encounters: power budgets, counters, and hands/throws. Dungeons and Dragons falls short in implementing these design principles sometimes for the sake of simplicity. Let's fix it.  Show Notes: https://www.runningofftherails.com/en-us/articles/decisions-episode-notes  Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel provide mechanics that address specific criticisms they made of 5e in the previous episode. Here are some short rules that will... <ul> <li>Prompt players to choose between a more diverse set of weapons</li> <li>Inspire new rivalries between different types of spellcasters</li> <li>Help you to present more varied loot and rewards to your players.</li> </ul> Three design tools modern games use to make interesting encounters: power budgets, counters, and hands/throws. Dungeons and Dragons falls short in implementing these design principles sometimes for the sake of simplicity. Let's fix it. Show Notes: <a href="https://www.runningofftherails.com/en-us/articles/decisions-episode-notes" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.runningofftherails.com/en-us/articles/decisions-episode-notes</a> Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

New Tradeoffs, Counters, Hands, and Throws For Your Game of DnD

Ray and Ariel discuss the three design tools modern games use to make interesting encounters: power budgets, counters, and hands/throws. Dungeons and Dragons falls short in implementing these design principles sometimes for the sake of simplicity, but often because it is catering to a different experience than a video game with instantaneous game-matching and player feedback. Ray and Ariel dig deeper though, and look for the specific places where Dungeon and Dragons could implement these concepts and improve on players' decision-making experience Amazing video by Game Designer's Toolkit that discusses Trade-offs, Counters, Hands and Throws and how video games get balanced: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXQzdXPTb2A&amp;ab_channel=GameMaker%27sToolkit  Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel discuss the three design tools modern games use to make interesting encounters: power budgets, counters, and hands/throws. Dungeons and Dragons falls short in implementing these design principles sometimes for the sake of simplicity, but often because it is catering to a different experience than a video game with instantaneous game-matching and player feedback. Ray and Ariel dig deeper though, and look for the specific places where Dungeon and Dragons could implement these concepts and improve on players' decision-making experience Amazing video by Game Designer's Toolkit that discusses Trade-offs, Counters, Hands and Throws and how video games get balanced: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXQzdXPTb2A&amp;ab_channel=GameMaker%27sToolkit" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXQzdXPTb2A&amp;ab_channel=GameMaker%27sToolkit</a> Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

D&D Decisions are Dull | Using Video Games to Create Fun Choices

Ray and Ariel discuss how to spice up the Find Familiar spell in dungeons and dragons. Familiars can often feel like a spell effect in our campaigns rather than fully fledged characters. Ray and Ariel were both inspired the hilarious fox familiar in Worlds Beyond Number to think up different ways DMs can create memorable familiars for their players.  Ray and Ariel present mechanics for familiar progression, discuss how to treat familiars as NPCs in your world, and come up with a few modifications to the find familiar ritual.  Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel discuss how to spice up the Find Familiar spell in dungeons and dragons. Familiars can often feel like a spell effect in our campaigns rather than fully fledged characters. Ray and Ariel were both inspired the hilarious fox familiar in Worlds Beyond Number to think up different ways DMs can create memorable familiars for their players. Ray and Ariel present mechanics for familiar progression, discuss how to treat familiars as NPCs in your world, and come up with a few modifications to the find familiar ritual. Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

Finding Fantastic Familiars ft. The Fox from Worlds Beyond Number

Ray and Ariel discuss achieving prestige fantasies in D&amp;D 5e. Why did the 5e Prestige Classes unearthed arcana miss the mark?  Then Ray and Ariel present mechanics for how they think that discovered and unexpected character paths can be successful in D&amp;D 5e.  Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel discuss achieving prestige fantasies in D&amp;D 5e. Why did the 5e Prestige Classes unearthed arcana miss the mark? Then Ray and Ariel present mechanics for how they think that discovered and unexpected character paths can be successful in D&amp;D 5e. Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery’s Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences⁠</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

Prestige Classes, Paragons And Other Discovered Character Paths in D&D

Link to Worlds Beyond Number: https://worldsbeyondnumber.com/  Ray and Ariel discuss their newest source of D&amp;D inspiration, Worlds Beyond Number. Their first project, The Wizard, the Witch, and the Wild One is a captivating coming of age story. The story told by Brennan Lee Mulligan, Erika Ishii, Aabria Iyengar, and Lou Wilson invokes the wonder of Hayao Miyazaki movies and inspires us to bring a more curated experience to our games of D&amp;D. Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Link to Worlds Beyond Number: <a href="https://worldsbeyondnumber.com/" rel="noopener noreferer nofollow" target="_blank">https://worldsbeyondnumber.com/</a> Ray and Ariel discuss their newest source of D&amp;D inspiration, Worlds Beyond Number. Their first project, The Wizard, the Witch, and the Wild One is a captivating coming of age story. The story told by Brennan Lee Mulligan, Erika Ishii, Aabria Iyengar, and Lou Wilson invokes the wonder of Hayao Miyazaki movies and inspires us to bring a more curated experience to our games of D&amp;D. Website:<a href=" https://runningofftherails.com" rel="noopener noreferer nofollow" target="_blank"> https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences" rel="noopener noreferer nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences</a> Instagram:<a href=" https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="noopener noreferer nofollow" target="_blank"> https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="noopener noreferer nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

Worlds Beyond Number

Ray and Ariel continue their discussion on how to create puzzles ingrained in the setting of your world that your players will enjoy. They have each prepared puzzles to add some concrete examples for how to run puzzles effectively and published them in the RotR blog here https://www.runningofftherails.com/en-us/articles.  In this episode, Ray and Ariel work through six points that helped guide their puzzle design. They use these checkpoints to make sure that the puzzles are a meaningful part of their campaign setting, and their players have total agency in how they tackle them. If you enjoyed the show today, please follow us on Instagram and Twitter for updates about giveaways, blog posts, new Youtube content, and new DM's guild content. Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel continue their discussion on how to create puzzles ingrained in the setting of your world that your players will enjoy. They have each prepared puzzles to add some concrete examples for how to run puzzles effectively and published them in the RotR blog here <a href="https://www.runningofftherails.com/en-us/articles" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.runningofftherails.com/en-us/articles</a>.  In this episode, Ray and Ariel work through six points that helped guide their puzzle design. They use these checkpoints to make sure that the puzzles are a meaningful part of their campaign setting, and their players have total agency in how they tackle them. If you enjoyed the show today, please follow us on<a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> </a>Instagram and Twitter for updates about giveaways, blog posts, new Youtube content, and new DM's guild content. Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

Perfect Puzzles Cont | This time with examples!

Ray and Ariel equip new and experienced tabletop RPG players with actionable tips and tricks to bring their game to the next level.We have been playing Dungeons and Dragons for years now and truly believe that tabletop RPGs offer a unique life experience that everyone should enjoy. Find out how you can adapt your game to your players and ensure a successful adventure at your table.

Ray and Ariel discuss their problems with puzzles in the traditional D&amp;D style. They talk through different ways puzzles can be more involved in the story of your campaign, while simultaneously not getting in the way of a good role playing session. The best puzzles can be the focal point of a fun and memorable session, but Ray and Ariel have both played in more sessions where the puzzle interrupted gameplay and even prevented the party from continuing the plot of the campaign.   In this episode, the goal is to dissect all the possible options for puzzles, and put them back together in a multi-faceted, thematic way. Ray and Ariel walk through a variety of types of puzzles and give examples that are more nuanced and less of a road block than puzzles you'll find in published modules. That way the adventuring party can enjoy the session by creatively solving the puzzle or leaving it for some other adventuring party to figure out while they move on to the rest of the story. If you enjoyed the show today, please follow us on Instagram and Twitter for updates about giveaways, blog posts, new Youtube content, and new DM's guild content. Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel discuss their problems with puzzles in the traditional D&amp;D style. They talk through different ways puzzles can be more involved in the story of your campaign, while simultaneously not getting in the way of a good role playing session. The best puzzles can be the focal point of a fun and memorable session, but Ray and Ariel have both played in more sessions where the puzzle interrupted gameplay and even prevented the party from continuing the plot of the campaign. In this episode, the goal is to dissect all the possible options for puzzles, and put them back together in a multi-faceted, thematic way. Ray and Ariel walk through a variety of types of puzzles and give examples that are more nuanced and less of a road block than puzzles you'll find in published modules. That way the adventuring party can enjoy the session by creatively solving the puzzle or leaving it for some other adventuring party to figure out while they move on to the rest of the story. If you enjoyed the show today, please follow us on<a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> </a>Instagram and Twitter for updates about giveaways, blog posts, new Youtube content, and new DM's guild content. Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

How to Make the Perfect Puzzle

Ray and Ariel look back on the year, share updates on Emery's Log of Legendary Resistances kickstarter, and discuss plans for the future of the podcast. Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/ Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel look back on the year, share updates on Emery's Log of Legendary Resistances kickstarter, and discuss plans for the future of the podcast. Reddit: <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/</a> Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

2022 In Review | Our Favorite Episodes, Emery's Updates, and the Future of RotR

Ray and Ariel layout examples and tools that will dungeon masters implement cliffhangers in their games of D&amp;D. Cliffhangers define how the time in between sessions feel to your players. They can be crucial for keeping a new group of players together during the time before they are invested in their characters. They can also be sources of hype and inspire plans and character motivation in the downtime in between sessions. Drive player engagement during the times away from the table by bringing cliffhangers to your table.  This episode draws heavy inspiration from Joseph Bendoski and J Washburn's creative writing podcast, Start Writing. Listen to one of their episodes about cliffhangers here: https://joseph-bendoski.com/sw106-dis-chapter-cliffhangers  Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/ Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel layout examples and tools that will dungeon masters implement cliffhangers in their games of D&amp;D. Cliffhangers define how the time in between sessions feel to your players. They can be crucial for keeping a new group of players together during the time before they are invested in their characters. They can also be sources of hype and inspire plans and character motivation in the downtime in between sessions. Drive player engagement during the times away from the table by bringing cliffhangers to your table. This episode draws heavy inspiration from Joseph Bendoski and J Washburn's creative writing podcast, Start Writing. Listen to one of their episodes about cliffhangers here: <a href="https://joseph-bendoski.com/sw106-dis-chapter-cliffhangers" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://joseph-bendoski.com/sw106-dis-chapter-cliffhangers</a> Reddit: <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/</a> Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

Cliffhangers, Leave Your Players Begging For More

Game designer Heavyarms joins Ray to discuss the Legacy of the Ranger in 5th edition dungeons and dragons. Ray and Heavyarms take a look at the fantastical origins of the ranger and try to make sense of the different versions that have been published by Wizards of the Coast. Then Heavyarms discusses the approach he took when designing his own 5th Edition Ranger class and why it delivers on the promise of the ranger where other attempts have fallen short.  Heavyarms Ranger class: https://www.heavyarms.com/products/ranger?variant=42490049953956 Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/ Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Game designer Heavyarms joins Ray to discuss the Legacy of the Ranger in 5th edition dungeons and dragons. Ray and Heavyarms take a look at the fantastical origins of the ranger and try to make sense of the different versions that have been published by Wizards of the Coast. Then Heavyarms discusses the approach he took when designing his own 5th Edition Ranger class and why it delivers on the promise of the ranger where other attempts have fallen short. Heavyarms Ranger class: <a href="https://www.heavyarms.com/products/ranger?variant=42490049953956" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.heavyarms.com/products/ranger?variant=42490049953956</a> Reddit: <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/</a> Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

The Legacy of the Ranger | ft. Heavyarms

Ray and Ariel discuss how to pace your dungeons and dragons adventure so the players have enough time to process all the great emotional stories you want to tell. When players are presented with conflict after conflict, the emotion of one story beat can get overshadowed by another. On the flip side, many sessions of d&amp;d can feel slow if the story doesn't progress or the combats drag from round to round. Ray and Ariel talk through the structure of story beats in popular fiction and successful WotC adventures and provide some easy tools to help you create an exhilarating and emotional journey at your table.  Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/ Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel discuss how to pace your dungeons and dragons adventure so the players have enough time to process all the great emotional stories you want to tell. When players are presented with conflict after conflict, the emotion of one story beat can get overshadowed by another. On the flip side, many sessions of d&amp;d can feel slow if the story doesn't progress or the combats drag from round to round. Ray and Ariel talk through the structure of story beats in popular fiction and successful WotC adventures and provide some easy tools to help you create an exhilarating and emotional journey at your table. Reddit: <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/</a> Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

Creating an Emotional Journey | How to Pace Your D&D Campaign

Ray and Ariel discuss one of the classic problems in dungeons and dragons: what to do when your players decide to split up. Specifically, they look at three different ways player characters can be separated during your sessions, even if they are technically in the same location. Ray and Ariel both love running games with split parties for different reasons, and share the successes they've had sharing the spotlight across a split group.  Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/ Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel discuss one of the classic problems in dungeons and dragons: what to do when your players decide to split up. Specifically, they look at three different ways player characters can be separated during your sessions, even if they are technically in the same location. Ray and Ariel both love running games with split parties for different reasons, and share the successes they've had sharing the spotlight across a split group. Reddit: <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/</a> Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

Three Ways to Split the Party

Ray and Ariel discuss Ray's recent experiences running a 100 Demon army against in his players. How can you as a DM deliver the fantasy of battling in an army in Dungeons and Dragons? We provide tips and tricks to help army combat be a hit at your table, no matter your player's level.   Ray used MCDM's new minion rules available for free to help him run this combat with fast pacing.  MCDM Flee Mortals free preview: https://shop.mcdmproductions.com/products/flee-mortals-preview-packet Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/ Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel discuss Ray's recent experiences running a 100 Demon army against in his players. How can you as a DM deliver the fantasy of battling in an army in Dungeons and Dragons? We provide tips and tricks to help army combat be a hit at your table, no matter your player's level. Ray used MCDM's new minion rules available for free to help him run this combat with fast pacing. MCDM Flee Mortals free preview: <a href="https://shop.mcdmproductions.com/products/flee-mortals-preview-packet" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://shop.mcdmproductions.com/products/flee-mortals-preview-packet</a> Reddit: <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/</a> Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

Running 100 Demons! | Taking On Armies And Huge Scale Battles In D&D | Featuring Flee Mortals Minion Rules

Ray and Ariel discuss Ray's recent experiences playing Gloomhaven with his dungeons and dragons group. Gloomhaven has 11 secret classes that players unlock and play as they retire characters. This is very different from how folks typically play D&amp;D 5e where they typically play one character per campaign. What would a game of Dungeons and Dragons look like if we embraced the idea that we would be retiring our strongest characters and starting new characters that slightly lagged the rest of the party in power level?  Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/ Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel discuss Ray's recent experiences playing Gloomhaven with his dungeons and dragons group. Gloomhaven has 11 secret classes that players unlock and play as they retire characters. This is very different from how folks typically play D&amp;D 5e where they typically play one character per campaign. What would a game of Dungeons and Dragons look like if we embraced the idea that we would be retiring our strongest characters and starting new characters that slightly lagged the rest of the party in power level?  Reddit: <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.reddit.com/r/RunningOffTheRails/</a> Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

Gloomhaven | Bring Retirement And Asymmetry To Your D&D Game 

Ray and Ariel discuss the the benefit of running dnd in a detailed setting. Fifth edition is largely setting agnostic. People have used the fifth edition ruleset to run games in modern, ancient, high-magic, and low-magic fantasy genres. This gives people a ton of flexibility, but is in stark contrast with most RPGs (e.g. 7th Sea, Blades in the Dark, etc.). Ray and Ariel use some classic examples like the Dark Sun setting from older dungeons and dragons editions to show the benefits of choosing a tone-appropriate setting when planning a campaign. It may add extra work before sitting down to play, but it will help the players and the DM stay on the same page, and curate a tone for the road ahead.  Dark Sun Setting Guide Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4G1vep6rcCI&amp;t=5187s  Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel discuss the the benefit of running dnd in a detailed setting. Fifth edition is largely setting agnostic. People have used the fifth edition ruleset to run games in modern, ancient, high-magic, and low-magic fantasy genres. This gives people a ton of flexibility, but is in stark contrast with most RPGs (e.g. 7th Sea, Blades in the Dark, etc.). Ray and Ariel use some classic examples like the Dark Sun setting from older dungeons and dragons editions to show the benefits of choosing a tone-appropriate setting when planning a campaign. It may add extra work before sitting down to play, but it will help the players and the DM stay on the same page, and curate a tone for the road ahead. Dark Sun Setting Guide Video: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4G1vep6rcCI&amp;t=5187s" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4G1vep6rcCI&amp;t=5187s</a> Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

What Fifth Edition is Missing | Choosing a Setting For Your Campaign

Ray and Ariel discuss the Implicit Knowledge Disparity—the gap between what a player knows and what their character knows. When the player and their character are expected to know very little about the setting, dnd tends to run very smoothly. But when the character is expected to know a lot about the setting, you could end up with a large knowledge disparity. Ray and Ariel discuss how to design your campaign so that players implicitly know enough about the world to fulfill the fantasy you're excited to run. Whether that be a plane jumping campaign of novel exploration, or a deeply political campaign with alliances and back-stabbing in the very first sessions.  Website: https://runningofftherails.com Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails

Ray and Ariel discuss the Implicit Knowledge Disparity—the gap between what a player knows and what their character knows. When the player and their character are expected to know very little about the setting, dnd tends to run very smoothly. But when the character is expected to know a lot about the setting, you could end up with a large knowledge disparity. Ray and Ariel discuss how to design your campaign so that players implicitly know enough about the world to fulfill the fantasy you're excited to run. Whether that be a plane jumping campaign of novel exploration, or a deeply political campaign with alliances and back-stabbing in the very first sessions. Website: <a href="https://runningofftherails.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://runningofftherails.com</a> Emery's Log of Legendary Eminences: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/runningofftherails/emerys-log-of-legendary-eminences</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/runningofftherails/</a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/RunningOffRails</a>

Does Your Character Know Too Much? | Exploring The Implicit Knowledge Disparity

Ray and Ariel equip new and experienced tabletop RPG players with actionable tips and tricks to bring their game to the next level. We have been playing Dungeons and Dragons for years now and truly believe that tabletop RPGs offer a unique life experience that everyone should enjoy. Find out how you can adapt your game to your players and ensure a successful adventure at your table.

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