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I've always preferred read-aloud text simply because it makes it explicit what the module designer expects the PCs to immediately know (or not know). I remember playing a few adventures for AD&D or BD&D that did not have read-aloud text, and module authors were infuriatingly obtuse about the...

I do think it's important to note that Matt goes out of his way to say that what you describe here is not what he means by a "forever DM". DMing is a lot more intense than playing, and if that's your jam that's great. To Matt, the "forever DM" he's talking about is someone who is, specifically...

Even then, only sometimes do those gems end up in a vid. Like this Forever DM video has clearly been bouncing around Matt's head for a couple years. Most of the things in this video are things he's had discussions about before. This is entirely alien to me. While it does read that he's...

I think the problem people are having is that if "situational" automatically caps the rating at C tier, then well over 90% of the spells in the game are automatically C tier or worse, and that's very optimistic. The number of B, A or potential higher tier spells is effectively zero. In that...

As a world-building and thematic exercise, I find languages great. They're interesting and flavorful, and add a lot of depth and mystery in the game world. I can hardly imagine a fantasy book that isn't enhanced by the inclusion of cultural factors like multiple languages. As a game element of...

Yeah, feats and multiclassing are player options. Magic items are character rewards, plot MacGuffins, and an essential aspect of the fantasy genre. It's a completely different category than pure mechanics like feats and multiclassing. It would be easier to eliminate spellcasters from the game...

Huh. It hadn't been going well, and the press around it was almost non-existent. I think I only saw discussion about it here. But it's still in a public beta. And WotC has always had a hard time with software products. Surely 10% of the team is unable to finish it. I wonder if they have...

"Compatible" does not mean "balanced". Those words have never meant the same thing. Elven Accuracy is an example of something that has always been busted. No surprises that it's busted in 2024. It's a bad design. They should not have made it that way in the first place. The fact that it's had...

If this were Magic: The Gathering, then "would" or "instead" indicates that it's a replacement effect that happens as an effect resolves and can prevent normal triggers from firing, while effects that say "when" alone are normal-triggered effects. The problem is that D&D doesn't have codified...

No, I don't agree. I don't even agree that that's the formal intent of errata or rules changes. I think those kinds of changes happen for people that specifically demand them. I think WotC only does it to shut up that very small, extremely vocal minority of people. I don't think most DMs bother...

I would imagine they simply didn't remember why it was errata'ed. I wouldn't have. It's a narrow and rare interaction, and it's kind of exactly the sort of thing that the DM should resolve in the moment. I can appreciate that people want an official answer. However, I feel like having easy...

This is basically my reaction. People on Reddit in particular get so bent out of shape about these kind of things when in reality they're pretty easily solved by going, "Oh, this doesn't make sense... it's got to be an error. We'll do this instead." Like the problem with Contagion in 2014...

5e is nothing if not consistent in the "Jesus, just start the game at level 3" messaging.

Merely because a rule exists in the book, and merely because it happens sometimes in your game, does not mean that that is what the game is about.

I don't particularly like crafting. In general, the core gameplay loop of the game is to go on an adventure. Adventures is where the gameplay is. As a result, the game should, to an almost unreasonable and certainly unrealistic degree, funnel the PCs into going on adventures. You want to save...

Pretty universally, I've had characters die when (a) I (or we) did something we knew was risky but felt was necessary at the time, and (b) the dice went against us. Everything from, "well, it might be trapped, but I think it's worth the risk" followed by failing a save, to "oh, I've got to...

Straightforward, clearly-explained rules with good organization... and essentially no oddball rules that you're not really interested in. With the exception of initiative rules being a bit arcane, infravision being stupid about realism, and AC being upside down, it's as straightforward and...

I'm sorry but I cannot parse this. Between spelling errors, lack of punctuation, and use of undefined terms, it's complete gibberish. Of course, but that's not the problem. The problem is that presentation matters. Once the rule books discuss degrees of success in concrete terms, players...

I don't like the knock-on effect that degrees of success has when it's spelled out like that. Namely, it says that you always have to roll for everything. With a binary system of success/failure, the DM can pretty easily handwave away the die roll and say "you succeed" or "you fail." The DM can...

I'm not sure when we last used alignment in our game. At least, not for PCs. I'm sure if I looked at most of the characters in our recent campaigns, the alignment section would be blank. I know it would be for mine. I definitely think alignment is no longer particularly useful as a concept...