The Lazy RPG Podcast - D&D and RPG News and GM Prep from Sly Flourish

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:15 Kickstarter Spotlight: Draconics the Peaceful Way to Play 5e 03:21 Kickstarter Spotlight: Wondrous Worlds by Nord Games 05:16 D&D & RPG News: D&D 2024 Free Rules Givith and then Taketh Away 09:28 Commentary: D&D 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide Thoughts and the Four Gamemaster's Guides 34:07 DM Tip: Avoid NPC Betrayals 44:59 Patreon Question: Favorite Short Adventure Books 47:52 Patreon Question: Expanding a GM's Reading List 49:18 Patreon Question: Focusing on Prep for the Next Session 51:09 Patreon Question: Needing to Improvise with Shadowdark 54:01 Patreon Question: Top House Rules for Shadowdark 57:03 Patreon Question: The Urgency of Multiple Quest Hooks # [01:00:50 Patreon Question: Where to End Shadowdark Sessions Links Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Draconis: The Peaceful Way to Play DND 5E Wondrous Worlds by Nord Games Updated D&D 2024 Free Rules Oops, that was a mistake Level Up Advanced 5e Trials and Treasure Tales of the Valiant Gamemaster's Guide

Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign. Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Podcast Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Midgard Worldbook Tales of the Valiant Obsidian for TTRPGs

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:16 Product Spotlight: Defiler of Moonsilk Keep 03:44 Product Spotlight: Horizons Magazine Issue 1 06:25 Product Spotlight: Frontiers of Eberron 12:35 Kickstarter Spotlight: Adventures in Teaching and Learning with TTRPGs 14:27 Kickstarter Spotlight: Dwarven Forge Dungeons Reforged 24:25 Commentary: Experiences at Gamehole Con 34:20 DM Tip: Pool Table Game Mastering 45:43 Patreon Question: What Makes a Great Monster Book 51:44 Patreon Question: Running Big Timed Events in Scenes Links Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Defiler of Moonsilk Keep Horizons Issue 1 Frontiers of Eberron Adventures in Teaching and Learning in TTRPGs Dwarven Forge Dungeons Reforged Level Up Advanced 5e Monstrous Menagerie

Mike discusses his experiences running the Shadowdark RPG for a year Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 02:17 D&D & RPG News: Call of Cthulhu Humbled Bundle 04:40 Sly Flourish News: City of Arches Key of Worlds Scenarios for Hero-Tier Subscribers 12:28 Product Spotlight: Dread Thingonomicon Markdown for Obsidian 16:19 Sly Flourish News: Lazy GM Reference Guides in Markdown for Obsidian 20:23 Sly Flourish News: Sly Flourish 2025 Calendar! 22:00 Commentary: The Trouble with Crafting Systems in 5e 36:37 DM Tip: Advanced Random Encounter Tricks 49:46 Patreon Question: Adding Subquests and Managing Levels with Campaign Arcs 54:04 Patreon Question: Keeping Combat Descriptions Flavorful 57:17 Patreon Question: Designing a Heroic Shadowdark-Style Game Links Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Call of Cthulhu Humbled Bundle Dread Thingonomicon Dread Laironomicon Lazy GM Resource Docs likewise have Obsidian versions Lazy GM's Resource Document Lazy GM's 5e Monster Builder Resource Document Crit-Tech's Lazy GM Documents on Github (including Obsidian Markdown versions) Sly Flourish 2025 calendar

Prep for the finale of Mike's Shadowdark Gloaming campaign! Visit the Sly Flourish Blog https://slyflourish.com/ Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter https://slyflourish.com/subscribe/ Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Podcast https://slyflourish.podbean.com/ Support Sly Flourish on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/slyflourish Buy Sly Flourish Books: https://shop.slyflourish.com/ Shadowdark RPG https://www.thearcanelibrary.com/pages/shadowdark Cursed Scroll 1 https://www.thearcanelibrary.com/products/cursed-scroll-zine-vol-1-diablerie-print Using Notion for RPG Prep https://slyflourish.com/lazy_dnd_with_notion.html

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:20 Sly Flourish News: Sly Flourish After-School RPG Club Sponsorship 07:44 D&D & RPG News: Free Kobold Press Encounter Builder 11:11 D&D & RPG News: Dread Thingonomicon Bundle of Holding for $8 13:52 D&D & RPG News: Goodman Games Humble Bundle 16:04 Kickstarter Spotlight: Grim Hollow Transformed Kickstarter 19:15 D&D & RPG News: Ars Magica in a Creative Commons License 26:33 DM Tip: Two Bandits Talking About the Characters 31:28 Patreon Question: Single Best Tip for New GMs 38:24 Patreon Question: What If Characters Don't Strike Lighting Rods? 44:12 Patreon Question: D&D 2024 Tool DCs and DM Agency 50:18 Patreon Question: Can You Mix TOV, A5e, D&D 2024, and D&D 2014? Links Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Sly Flourish After-School RPG Sponsorship Kobold Press Encounter Builder Dread Thingonomicon Goodman Games humble bundle Grim Hollow Transformed Kickstarter Ars Magica Rules and Setting under CC BY SA Top Tips for RPG Game Masters Lightning Rods

Mike begins his campaign prep for his Dragon Empire Midgard-based Tales of the Valiant campaign! Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Podcast Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Tales of the Valiant Midgard Worldbook

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:30 Kickstarter Spotlight: Enter the Labyrinth by Kobold Press 05:15 Kickstarter Spotlight: Dragontown and the Darkness Below 11:03 D&D & RPG News: Horizons Magazine by Wildmage Press 12:16 D&D & RPG News: Beadle and Grimm 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide Map Pack 14:04 D&D & RPG News: 2024 Player's Handbook is D&D's Fastest Selling Book Ever 18:22 Commentary: You Don't Own Your D&D Beyond Books 21:24 D&D & RPG News: Hidden Subclass Compatibility in D&D 2024 27:32 Commentary: The Current State of Generative AI and TTRPGs 46:23 Patreon Question: Industry Standards for Releasing RPG Material Under Open Licenses 52:03 Patreon Question: Coming Up with Villains or Fronts in Strange Campaign Settings 54:36 Patreon Question: Excluding a Player from a Game Links Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Kobold Press’s Labyrinth Kickstarter Dragontown and the Darkness Below Kickstarter Wildmage Press Horizons Magazine Beadle and a Grymm Greyhawk map pack D&D 2024 Player’s Handbook Fastest Selling D&D Book of All Time New California law means digital stores can’t imply you’re buying a game when you’re merely licensing it Where do your Steam games go when you die? The Best LLM for Generating RPG Stuff – Your Brain

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Join the City of Arches Kickstarter! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:16 D&D & RPG News: Roll20 Packages for Doctors Without Borders 03:04 Kickstarter Spotlight: Pirate Borg 09:06 DM Tip: Run I6 Ravenloft with Shadowdark on Halloween 10:45 D&D & RPG News: Free D&D 2024 Rules with All Twelve Classes 13:20 D&D & RPG News: D&D Adventurer's League Moves to D&D 2024 26:13 D&D & RPG News: D&D 2024 PHB Available Physically and on Four VTTs 33:55 DM Tip: D&D 2024's Handling of Tools and DCs 41:02 DM Tip: Two Words for Increasing Combat Challenge 51:06 Patreon Question: What's My Next Campaign? 53:26 Patreon Question: Upward and Downward Beats in a Campaign 57:46 Patreon Question: Why Switch to Obsidian? Links Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Pirate Borg Down Among the Dead Ravenloft with Shadowdark Video Ravenloft with Shadowdark Article D&D Beyond D&D 2024 Free Rules Includes All Twelve Classes D&D Adventures League Updates D&D PHB 2024 on Foundry D&D PHB 2024 on Fantasy Grounds D&D PHB 2024 on Roll20 Roll20 Characters Midgard Dragon Empire Campaign Video

Mike begins his campaign prep for his Dragon Empire Midgard-based Tales of the Valiant campaign! Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Podcast Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Tales of the Valiant Midgard Worldbook

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00:00 Show Start 00:01:16 Kickstarter Spotlight: Worldographer 2025 by Inkwell Ideas 00:03:36 Kickstarter Spotlight: Shadow City Mysteries 00:04:53 Product Spotlight: Level Up Advanced 5e on Bundle of Holding 00:10:46 D&D & RPG News: MCDM's License for Draw Steel 00:17:33 Product Spotlight: Shadowdark Guide to Monster Statistics by Matt Dietrich 00:22:14 Commentary: Four Sources of D&D History 00:44:16 DM Tip: Instant Monsters for 5e 00:59:02 Patreon Question: Handling Back Seat Driving Veteran Players 01:03:17 Patreon Question: Running the City of Arches with Shadowdark 01:05:40 Patreon Question: Managing Secrets with Multiple Paths Ahead 01:08:09 Patreon Question: Building Single-Session Episodic Adventures Links Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Worldographer Kickstarter Shadow City Mysteries Crowdfunding campaign Level Up A5e Bundles of Holding – Core Level Up A5e Bundles of Holding – Adventures Draw Steel creators license Shadowdark Quick Monster Stats by Matt Dietrich D&D 50 Year Panel D&D 50 Celebration Games When We Were Wizards The Making of Original D&D: 1970 - 1977

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Join the City of Arches Kickstarter! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:13 Sly Flourish News: Mike Loses a Bet 02:59 D&D & RPG News: D&D 2024 and Free D&D on D&D Beyond 14:06 D&D & RPG News: Rich Lescoulflair Talking Phantasy Star RPG on Morrus's Podcast 15:42 D&D & RPG News: Matt Coleville on Eldritch Lorecast Talking About Project Sigil 19:35 D&D & RPG News: Free Hex Crawl Rules from Cursed Scroll 4 23:26 Product Spotlight: Broken Weave for 5e by Cubicle 7 36:24 DM Tip: Distance, Activity, and Attitude for Random Encounters 48:18 Patreon Question: Rewriting Published Adventures for Table Use 52:09 Patreon Question: Building Your Own Pantheon 55:38 Patreon Question: Using the Eight Steps for Published Adventures Links Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: 2024 D&D Free Rules on D&D Beyond Rich Lescouflair on Phantasy Star RPG on Morrus's Podcast Matt Coleville on Eldritch Lorecast Free Hex Crawl Rules from Arcane Library Broken Weave for 5e Reaction Tables Across the Years Choosing the Right Steps from Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Join the City of Arches Kickstarter! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 00:01:49 D&D & RPG News: Follow Up on D&D 2014 Material in D&D Beyond 00:05:59 D&D & RPG News: Lost Worlds of Gygax Humble Bundle 00:10:46 D&D & RPG News: D&D Direct Announcements 00:19:48 Product Spotlight: Knave 2 by Ben Milton 00:41:12 DM Tip: Twelve Types of Medieval Artwork and Architecture for Dungeon Delving 00:53:50 Patreon Question: Convincing New Players to Try a New System 00:57:09 Patreon Question: 18 Months Since Other Publishers Published on D&D Beyond 01:05:04 Patreon Question: Using City of Arches with Theros 01:06:38 Patreon Question: Empire of the Ghouls Out of Print 01:08:41 Patreon Question: Favorite Sourcebook and Setting Links Join the City of Arches Kickstarter! Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Lost World of Gygax Humble Bundle D&D Direct Announcements Knave 2 Twelve Types of Medieval Artwork and Architecture

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Join the City of Arches Kickstarter! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

Mike builds a 1st level character in the Shadowdark RPG. Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 02:30 D&D & RPG News: D&D Designers of All Editions Talk About and Play D&D 06:05 D&D & RPG News: Kelsey Dionne of Shadowdark on Morrus's Unofficial Tabletop RPG Podcast 07:04 Commentary: WOTC Removes 2014 Spells, Items, and Rules from the D&D Beyond Character Builder 28:06 DM Tip: Track the Characters 42:07 Patreon Question: Running Short Games for Large Groups 46:14 Patreon Question: Favorite D&D 2024 Rule? 48:47 Patreon Question: Running Mastermind and Dark Nemesis Bosses 51:49 Patreon Question: Releasing the Forge of Foes Generic Monster Stats into the CC 57:47 Patreon Question: What's In your DM - GM Kit? Links City of Arches Kickstarter! Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: D&D Designers of All Editions Talk About and Play D&D - Celebrating 50 Years of Dungeons & Dragons Kelsey Dionne on Morrus's Unofficial Tabletalk Podcast D&D Beyond Removes 2014 Spells, Items, Magic Items, and Rules from the Character Builder Further "Clarification" EN World Thread – How D&D Beyond Will Handle Access To 2014 Rules D&D Beyond, Wizards of the Coast, 5e, and You Lazy GM's 5e Monster Builder Resource Document

Mike builds a 1st level character with Tales of the Valiant! Join the City of Arches Kickstarter! Tales of the Valiant Tales of the Valiant Character Sheet

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:35 Kickstarter Spotlight: Horror at Devil's Run on Foundry 03:34 D&D & RPG News: Rob Heinsoo on Gnomecast 05:09 D&D & RPG News: Free League Publishing Pulls PDFs from the Alchemy VTT 19:34 Product Spotlight: Thrones and Bones Player's Guide by Lazy Wolf Studios 25:36 D&D & RPG News: Letters to Washington Post About D&D 28:14 DM Tip: Running an Infiltration in Summervine Villa 49:54 Patreon Question: Do We Need to Change Forge of Foes and the Lazy Encounter Benchmark for D&D 2024? 59:59 Patreon Question: Can a Paid DM Run Your Books? Links Horror at Devil's Run Foundry Kickstarter Rob Heinsoo on Gnomecast Free League Removes PDFs from Foundry Alchemy's Stance on PDFs Thrones & Bones Player's Guide Thrones & Bones Campaign Guide These dungeons are home. These dragons forged friends – Washington Post Running Infiltrations and Heists Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books:

Mike builds a 1st level character with Level Up Advanced 5e! Join the City of Arches Kickstarter! Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Podcast Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Level Up Advanced 5e A5e Tools Form Fillable Character Sheets Video Contents 00:00 Show Start 02:13 What Is Level Up Advanced 5e? 06:00 The Step to Build a Character 07:02 Building a Character's Origin 09:52 Heritage Details 14:08 Culture Details 16:15 Background Details 18:46 Choosing a Destiny 21:22 Choosing an Adventure Class 30:31 Skill Specializations 32:34 Choosing Ability Scores 34:12 Equipping Weapons and Armor

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 02:04 Kickstarter Spotlight: Amazing Encounters and Dungeons 05:15 Kickstarter Spotlight: The Perilous Void 06:23 Commentary: Follow-Up on Blurring 2024 D&D PHB Videos 13:11 Sly Flourish News: Mike on Morrus's Unofficial Tabletop Podcast on Blurgate and Project Sigil - the D&D 3D VTT 13:55 Sly Flourish News: More Character Builds with Tales of the Valiant and Shadowdark 14:30 D&D & RPG News: WOTC Designers on Eldritch Lorecast 15:55 D&D & RPG News: Tales of the Valiant on Herolab and Shard 20:54 Sly Flourish News: Biomes of the City of Arches 29:03 Patreon Question: Bifurcation of the Hobby Between 3d Online and Tabletop Play 35:51 Patreon Question: Handling Simultanous Events 38:54 Patreon Question: Is a D&D Beyond Content Subscription Service Acceptable? 43:13 Patreon Question: D&D 2024 PHB or Shadowdark? Links Join the City of Arches Kickstarter! Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Amazing Encounters and Dungeons Kickstarter The Perilous Void Kickstarter A real lawyer talks about the blurring situation and fair use Mike on Morrus's Unofficial Tabletop Podcast WOTC Designers on Eldritch Lorecast Tales of the Valiant on Herolab Tales of the Valiant on Shard Black Flag on Shard

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

Mike builds a character with the new D&D 2024 Player's Handbook City of Arches Kickstarter! Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Show Start 00:00 Video Start 01:17 Disclaimers 01:44 Making a Character Sheet 03:15 Creating a Character First Steps 04:08 Choosing a Class 07:51 Most Important Character Building Tip 09:44 Spells 19:56 Choosing a Background 26:09 Equipment 32:25 Species 36:41 Character Backstory Stuff 37:27 Languages 38:45 Determine Ability Scores 42:09 Appearances 44:41 Passive Perception 47:37 Calculating Weapon Attacks and Damage 51:03 Other Details 53:34 Final Thoughts

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:07 Sly Flourish News: City of Arches Kickstarter! 02:18 Kickstarter Spotlight: Victoriana 5e by Cubicle 7 05:12 Commentary: WOTC Made Me Blur My D&D 2024 Videos 25:09 D&D & RPG News: Shadowdark Wins Four ENNIES! 26:34 Commentary: Survive a Future Digital D&D 43:21 Sly Flourish News: City of Arches Campaign Outlines 51:31 Patreon Question: Maps and Mapping At the Table 54:23 Patreon Question: What Makes the City of Arches Unique? 58:29 Patreon Question: Awarding Treasure to Specific Characters Links Support the City of Arches Kickstarter! Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Victoriana Kickstarter by Cubicle 7 WOTC's Feedback Forum Shadowdark RPG Survive a Digital D&D JP Coovert Dungeon Mapping Book Dyson Logos Map Key

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

Mike dives deep into the D&D 2024 Player's Handbook! City of Arches Kickstarter! Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Show Contents 00:00 Intro 01:58 Disclaimers 02:42 Big Thoughts Up Front 03:35 Should You Buy It? 05:55 What Do I Love? 10:11 What Do I Not Love? 15:25 No Cultures, Just Species 19:46 Other Things Not Fixed 22:26 On Compatibility 27:08 Things May Be in the DMG But I Wouldn't Know 27:49 Good for New Players? 34:49 How's the Art? 36:11 The Best Improvement in D&D 2024 37:33 New Mechanical Language and "Utilize" 40:18 No Downtime 41:49 No Gods 43:11 Not Enough On Session Zeros and Safety Tools 46:06 Backgrounds and Character Optimization 50:48 I Love the Conjure Spells 53:10 Lucky 55:27 The Awesome Rules Glossary 57:41 Marching Order 58:04 What Your Character Would Do 58:45 Final Thoughts

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:22 Sly Flourish News: City of Arches Kickstarter Next Week! 02:43 D&D & RPG News: Lots of D&D 2024 Info Next Week 03:51 D&D & RPG News: Solodark Solo-play Video by Kelsey Dionne 06:12 D&D & RPG News: When We Were Wizards Podcast 19:19 Kickstarter Spotlight: Nimble 5e 26:58 Sly Flourish News: City of Arches Obsidian Skull Walkthrough 38:40 DM Tip: Handling Questions of Morality in TTRPGs 51:38 Patreon Question: Players Suspicious of Potentially Betraying NPCs Links City of Arches Kickstarter! Solodark Video Free Solodark PDF When We Were Wizards Nimble 5e Backerkit Launch Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books:

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:21 D&D & RPG News: ENnie Voting Goes Live! 02:27 Product Spotlight: Dyson Maps Bundle of Holding 05:09 D&D & RPG News: Level Up Gateway Online Character Builder 22:52 Sly Flourish News: City of Arches Kickstarter Coming August 6th 35:00 Commentary: Top Ten Lazy 5e Tricks 54:46 Patreon Question: What Would I do If I Was In Charge of D&D? 58:19 Patreon Question: Magic Numbers to Keep In Your Head Links City of Arches Kickstarter Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: ENnies Voting Dyson Maps Bundle of Holding Level Up Gateway Preview

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:21 Sly Flourish News: City of Arches Kickstart Coming August 6th! 07:54 D&D & RPG News: The Negative Feedback of D&D Beyond's Exclusive Offers 21:27 Commentary: The Lost Modularity of D&D and How to Get it Back 35:41 Commentary: Is Shadowdark the Best D&D Starter Set? 49:07 Patreon Spotlight: The SlyFlourish.com Downloadable Archive 52:12 Patreon Question: Lazy DMing with Virtual Tabletops (VTTs) 56:07 Patreon Question: How Do We Feel About D&D 2024? Links City of Arches Kickstarter Prelaunch! PC Gamer on D&D Beyond's Preorders Shadowdark Quickstart Set Free Shadowdark Quickstart Set PDFs Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books:

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:11 D&D & RPG News: Dyson's Delves Bundle of Holding 04:19 D&D & RPG News: Monte Cook Games 50% off 5e Products 07:26 Sly Flourish News: Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master On Sale for 50% off 09:09 D&D & RPG News: D&D 2024 Class Videos 10:04 Commentary: 2024 D&D Needed a DM Advocate 17:45 Commentary: WOTC Says the Quiet Part Out Loud: "Frustrating for Dungeon Masters" 24:10 Commentary: Is Tales of the Valiant the 2024 D&D We Want? 26:23 Commentary: Comparing Four Versions of 5e 38:52 DM Tip: Expanding Tales of the Valiant's Doom Points 49:15 Patreon Question: Running Games for Young Neurodivergent Kids 53:59 Patreon Question: Comparing Monster Spellcaster Styles 59:40 Patreon Question: Asking Questions to Players Without Tipping Your Hand 01:02:59 Patreon Question: Tips for On-Call Players and Their Characters 01:04:45 Patreon Question: Tips for Evaluating Published Adventures 01:10:39 Patreon Question: Missing Stat Block Info when Running Monsters 01:13:35 Patreon Question: Why Are Gaming PDFs Crappy for So Many Devices? Publishers, Publish ePub! Links Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master On Sale for 50% off! Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Dyson's Delves Bundle of Holding Monte Cook Games 50% off 5e Sale "Frustrating Dungeon Masters" D&D 2024 Rogue Preview Tales of the Valiant Level Up Advanced 5e

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:38 Product Spotlight: Esper Genesis on Bundle of Holding 02:35 Product Spotlight: Magic Item Card Generator by Inkwell Ideas 04:30 D&D & RPG News: 2024 D&D Core Book Videos 08:39 Commentary: D&D 2024 Monster Stat Block -- Yuck 14:10 Commentary: The 2024 D&D Players Handbook is the Only Book that Matters 17:53 Commentary: The Specifics of D&D 2024 Compatibility with 5e 29:56 D&D & RPG News: Mobile Character Builder for D&D 2024 on Roll20 32:12 Sly Flourish News: Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master On Sale 33:17 DM Tip: Use NPC Archetypes from a Single Show 40:50 Patreon Question: What Digital Tools Would Help Us? 46:57 Patreon Question: Managing Teleportation in Campaigns 52:57 Patreon Question: How Would I Run Vecna Eve of Ruin 59:48 Patreon Question: How Do You Run Maps? Links Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master on Sale for 50% off Digital and 30% off Hardcover! Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Esper Genesis on Bundle of Holding Printable Magic Cards by Inkwell Ideas D&D 2024 Reveals and Discussions on EN World D&D 2024 Updates on Comicbook.com D&D 2024 Monster Stat Block Revealed Roll20 D&D Character Builder Character Archetypes from Expanse

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:18 D&D & RPG News: WOTC Begins Posting to EN World 04:15 Product Spotlight: Solodark for Shadowdark RPG 09:10 Product Spotlight: More Purple More Better Character Builder for 5e 22:43 Patreon Spotlight: 5e Artisanal Monster Database 27:23 DM Tip: Finding Players and Building a Resilient Group 41:24 Patreon Question: Allowing Alternative Character Options 44:18 Patreon Question: Uses for Generative AI and RPGs -- Is it Cheating? Links Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: WOTC's Post on EN World Solodark – Solo Rule for Shadowdark More Purple More Better Finding and Maintaining a D&D Group How Do People Find In-Person Players?

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:01 Commentary: Happy Pride Month 01:33 Commentary: How to Get More Engagement on YouTube! 02:18 D&D & RPG News: Roll20 Buys Demiplane 12:43 Kickstarter Spotlight: Voidrunner for 5e by EN World Publishing 16:27 Patreon Spotlight: Infiltration of Bonespur Keep 19:46 DM Tip: Organize Your Gaming PDFs 27:59 DM Tip: Searching PDFs on MacOS 30:49 DM Tip: Search PDFs with Finder on the Mac 32:20 DM Tip: Alfred for Searching PDFs on a Mac 34:18 DM Tip: Search PDFs with Ripgrep All 38:25 Patreon Question: Getting Excited for Longform Campaigns 42:17 Patreon Question: Contingencies for TPKs Links Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Roll20 Buys Demiplane Adam Bradford Moves to Fantasy Grounds Voidrunner Kickstarter by EN World Publishing Organize Your RPG PDFs Searching PDFs with Spotlight Alfred for MacOS Ripgrep All

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:05 D&D & RPG News: Cover Art for 2024 D&D Dungeon Master's Guide 03:10 D&D & RPG News: Sly Flourish and Elderbrain Video on Adventure Design 04:24 Commentary: Are Actual Plays Building False Expectations? 21:04 Patreon Spotlight: Dwarven Forge Virtual Tabletop Backdrops 29:13 DM Tip: Leaving Blanks 45:06 Patreon Question: GM Tips for Players 48:18 Patreon Question: Managing Monster Stat Blocks 51:21 Patreon Question: Integrating Prophecies and Fate into D&D Games 53:42 Patreon Question: Medium-Length Campaigns 56:58 Patreon Question: Players Projecting Micro-Aggressions 59:59 Patreon Question: Commiting Time and Energy to Prep a Game Links Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: EN World on New DMG Cover EN World New Special Edition DMG Cover Sly Flourish and Elderbrain talk Adventure Design Against Lore by Cory Doctorow

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:02 Kickstarter Spotlight: Iskandar Adventures Volume 1 04:40 Product Spotlight: Torrents of the Spellhoarder by Elderbrain 09:40 D&D & RPG News: Rob Heinsoo on Mastering Dungeons 11:55 D&D & RPG News: Scroll for Initiative on Pass Without Trace 18:12 D&D & RPG News: Bob World Builder on Gridded, Abstract Maps, and Theater of the Mind 20:47 Commentary: New Poll Results on Combat Styles 24:44 DM Tip: The Lost Art of Abstract Maps 36:15 Patreon Question: Running a Quick Conclusion to a Campaign 40:00 Patreon Question: Are Secrets Always True? 41:09 Patreon Question: Upward Beats for Dungeons 45:18 Patreon Question: Appropriate Challenges, Quests, and Adventures for 1st Lvel Characters 47:29 Patreon Question: Taking Away the Characters' Stuff 50:48 Patreon Question: Buying Material Multiple Times on Different Platforms Links Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: Kickstarter: Iskandar Adventures Volume 1 Torrents of the Spellhoarder Rob Heinsoo on Mastering Dungeons Scroll for Initiative on Pass Without Trace Bob World Builder on Grid, Theater of the Mind, and Abstract Maps Grid, Abstract Map, and Theater of the Mind 2023 Poll Results The Abstract Battle Map Sly Flourish article Beats of a Dungeon Crawl

Mike prepares for his Shadowdark RPG campaign, the Gloaming! Shadowdark RPG Campaign Notebook available to Sly Flourish patrons Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books Shadowdark RPG Cursed Scroll 1 Dyson Maps

D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com Contents 00:00 Show Start 01:24 D&D & RPG News: Cypher Humble Bundle -- $570 of books for $25 04:31 D&D & RPG News: New Covers and Greyhawk in 2024 D&D Books 11:35 D&D & RPG News: Support Victims of Rio Grande Flooding with this $20 RPG Bundle 12:48 D&D & RPG News: Rob Heinsoo Interview on La Taberna de Rol 15:56 Product Spotlight: Tales of the Labyrinth by Kobold Press 23:15 D&D & RPG News: Tales of the Valiant on Shard Tabletop 36:08 Patreon Spotlight: Myre's End Adventure for Patrons 39:23 Commentary: One Night with Level Up Advanced 5e 56:44 Patreon Question: Three House Rules for Shadowdark RPG Links Cypher Humble Bundle D&D 2024 Cover Reveal D&D 2024 Other News Rio Grande Flood Charity Bundle Rob Heinsoo on La Taberna de Rol Thirteenth Age V2 Kickstarter Guide to the Labyrinth by Kobold Press Tales of the Valiant on Shard Black Flag SRD on Shard Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books:

Mike ranks ten years worth of campaigns from S through F tier. 00:00 Show Start 01:18 Goal: Define Criteria for Evaluating Future Campaigns 02:58 Tier Ranking Ground Rules 06:28 Beginning the Tier Rankings 06:41 Shadow of the Demon Lord 07:28 Numenera 09:39 Rime of the Frost Maiden 11:29 Wild Beyond the Witchlight 12:35 Blades in the Dark 14:08 Curse of Strahd 15:29 Descent into Avernus 18:17 Eberron Rising from the Last War 19:01 Empire of the Ghouls 20:22 Ghosts of Saltmarsh 22:21 Hoard of the Dragon Queen 23:10 Dragons of Icespire Peak 25:33 Lost Mine of Phandelver 27:07 Out of the Abyss 28:40 Princes of the Apocalypse 29:23 Rise of Tiamat 29:56 Scarlet Citadel 32:04 Gloaming: Cursed Scroll 1 33:45 Shadowed Keep of the Borderlands 35:15 Storm King's Thunder 37:39 Tomb of Annihilation 39:56 Waterdeep Dragon Heist 41:50 Spelljammer: Light of Xaryxis 45:53 Dragons of Stormwreck Isle 47:14 Campaign Tier-Ranking Summary 49:36 What Did I Learn? 51:07 Product Design Matters More than Production Quality Links Visit the Sly Flourish Blog Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Podcast Support Sly Flourish on Patreon Buy Sly Flourish Books: https://shop.slyflourish.com/ Final Tier Ranking Image Tiermaker SF Campaign Tier Link Shadow of the Demon Lord Numenera Blades in the Dark Gloaming: Cursed Scroll 1 Shadowed Keep on the Borderlands (affiliate link) Empire of the Ghouls (affiliate link) Scarlet Citadel (affiliate link) Dragons of Stormwreck Isle (affiliate link) Curse of Strahd (affiliate link) Wild Beyond the Witchlight (affiliate link)