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It is boring for all spellcasters to have the same mechanics.

This post is mostly about bardic magic. Bards (and rangers) preparing spells: From a lore perspective I would prefer only Wizards, Clerics, and Druids to have access to the full spell list and be able to potentially prepare any spell on that list. I think it would also make sense for all...

My perspective on mundane extraordinary abilities is quite simple. If the Ranger casts hunter's mark, it is an explicitly magical ability that is functionally identical to other spells. The effect can be dispelled, the casting can be interrupted, etc. etc. The Ranger has learned how to cast...

There are some creative class abilities in this packet (Rover! Elusive!) that are very welcome. But why oh why do they keep forcing mundane class abilities into the spellcasting framework? This just makes it harder to develop classes for low-magic settings or classes with unique mechanics that...

The Fool's Gold kickstarter might be worth a mention next week: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hitpointpress/fools-gold-into-the-bellowing-wilds

Hi Teldarian, Thanks for the details! I didn't realize that Ras Nsi came from a novel. Unfortunately, my campaign stalled due to life changes among the players and the demands of a new job. I'm still hoping to run it one of these days... Ben

When I read this subclass, I immediately imagined a team of gloom stalkers entering a region of total darkness, and then bumping into each other and getting confused because they can't see each other! I think the ability is badly worded. Here's how I would rule the L3 ability: A gloom stalker...

For my games, these are the three Masters: Tolkien: give your setting mythical and historical depth Vance: human culture is diverse and comical, human venality is constant and comical Lovecraft: there is no greater fear than the fear of the unknown There are tons of other authors whose works I...

It definitely works, but it also removes some sense of agency. When the party is being stalked by monsters, stealth vs passive perception feels fair. When the party is ambushed by a trap, it seems less fair. There's also the question of what happens after the first trap hits them and they...

Good question. For a while I was just going to drop it, but then I thought of a way to bring it into the storyline without the FR slant. Xen'drik already has frost giants, so no worries about where THEY came from. I'm thinking Mezro was actually a giant city repurposed by the Chultan settlers...

Nice article! The various pelgrane scenes from Dying Earth are always my inspiration for role-playing perytons. Ben

I don't have time to play all the big adventures, so pretty good. If the next hardcover is an Eberron update plus an adventure, even better! I think Curse of Strahd was a pretty good model. All the required rules updates for Eberron could fit easily into an appendix.

I'm putting it on the large island W of Stormreach, which I think is about the right size and climate. Ben

No worries. The only canon FR detail that I checked for this timeline was how long ago the Spellplague happened, and I did make sure that the disappearance of Mezro happened at about the same time. Cheers, Ben

Hi everyone, I've pieced together a geopolitical history of Chult based on snippets of information throughout the book and my own interpolations. Here it is, in hopes that other DMs find it useful. Note that I'm running ToA in Eberron, which is why the timeline ignores any pre-ToA history of...

That one is good, but the bodak maze is even better! I'm asking each player to make two PCs for sure...

Me too! But I'm not going to make too many changes to the book. You can follow my thoughts and snippets of the campaign to start soon at "acererakUnholy" on twitter. Acererak is a plane-hopper, who sets up his traps all over the multiverse. So I have no problem with bringing him to Eberron...

Sorry for misinterpreting. I just checked the book -- I didn't realize there was alien growth in the vault too. I would rule that the beholder can use its action to shoot a single random ray through the growth, in the interest of concealing itself a little longer. Ben

My understanding is that the beholder is an optional encounter--the PCs can fight it to steal its treasure or bypass it. If they do that level without bothering the beholder, it doesn't bother them.

Eladrin is a pretty good take on a fey/sidhe elf, it gives mechanical support to the archetype of a passionate and volatile character without being overpowered. The Gith are a bit bland... I'm all for giving them innate psionics but their specific powers and ribbons could have been chosen...