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For me, it really depends on what it means to "use alignment". Do characters make moral and ethical decisions? Absolutely. Can positions on good-evil and law-chaos axes* describe a portion of the variation in how different characters make those decisions? Sure. Do I use alignment...

The general point stands, but WotC can't actually be trying to claim "goliath" as exclusive IP can they? If CR could use Wizards' specific portrayal of goliaths but couldn't describe them with a word that's been around longer than the English language, that would seem like the exact opposite of...

If it is intended to give legitimacy, it does so very badly. I really doubt that "Your unique setting is valid because it's actually a subpart of our larger setting." is the sort of validation most creators are hoping for. Meanwhile, a DM who choses to embrace the multiverse framework runs...

Alphabetical organization is a very slight improvement if you're trying to look up something specific during gameplay. But it's thoroughly unhelpful when browsing for inspiration. I'd much rather have things organized with all the beasts in one section, all the undead in another section, and so...

True. Even the 5e Monster Manual describes Plesiosaurus as "a marine dinosaur", and Volo's puts Dimetrodon under the "Dinosaur" heading. Dimetrodon is more closely related to us than it is to dinosaurs!

Multiverse considerations aside, as a biologist, that figure is just painful. If the elves of Ravenloft and Spelljammer come "from all worlds", why are they shown as independent branches from the "Nomadic High Elves" common ancestor? Among the other settings, why is there no attempt to...

Addding options that don't exist in the Forgotten Realms is great, but it doesn't require presenting things as a unified multiverse. It works just as well (better, I'd argue) with genuinely independent settings or with a setting-agnostic approach.

Very much agree with the idea that this is counter productive. I suppose it makes some level of sense from a branding perspective, but it's a terrible choice in terms of storytelling. A "multiverse" cosmology can provide an expansion of storytelling possibilities when starting from a single...

Update 23 said "Our lovely Kickstarter backers (hey, that’s YOU!) will still have an opportunity to watch the two-part special that kicks off the series before anyone else AND because you’re a backer, you'll be able to access the first season for free." They absolutely followed through on the...

The Hexblade subclass: I really like the design approach of giving the Warlock what are effectively two subclass choices, a pact boon determining your general tools and skillset, and a patron representing the source of your power and granting some additional abilities to match that flavor. The...

That's not what I'm trying to imply. I think the CR crew absolutely care about fan goodwill and probably did try to negotiate better access terms. I just think, in principle, it should have been possible for them to have more success in doing so.

It may be unrealistic that Amazon would do it purely voluntarily, but I'm not convinced it should have been unrealistic for CR to negotiate. Given pre-existing Prime subscriptions and the availability of free trials, providing backers with a more official means of access wouldn't actually have...

The Kickstarter was originally for a single animated special. When it did better than expected, that turned into a 10 episode series, with the originally planned special making up the first two episodes. After the Kickstarter ended, the Amazon deal allowed them to expand it to two 12 episode...

I think there are two forms of complaints, that are, to some degree, being conflated with one another. The first is frustration with backers not receiving a permanent/owned copy of the series. While this is something that's certainly reasonable to want, it's also something that was never...

My preference is for rolling with the caveat that I want to do the rolling before I settle on a character concept. I'd have a much higher opinion of point buy if it were callibrated to allow the full range of scores possible through rolling. The possibly of extremely good or genuinely bad...

Speaking for myself, it's not a matter of hating the lore, but rather of hating the broader idea of any particular set of lore being definitively described as "D&D lore". I've always seen the game as a toolbox of pseudomedieval fantasy elements, some original, some from traditional folklore...

The live broadcast is free on both Twitch and Youtube. The Twitch VOD is available immediately to subscribers. The Youtube VOD is available the Monday after the broadcast.

I'm a bit puzzled by the notion this is intended for Christians belonging to theological traditions that would otherwise frown on D&D. I would think that a setting with Jesus and other key figures as characters would have more potential to end up being sacriligeous than one set explicitely in a...

If it is a literal newt's eye, even Flesh to Stone doesn't fully solve the logistics problem- you're still going to need a reasonably skilled stonecarver to extract the eyes from your petrified newt. You could try removing the eyes first, I suppose, but at that point the eyes would be objects...

Killing a person robs them of their fundamental self in a uniquely profound and lasting way. That's not a nitpicky edge case. It's what most weapons and many combat techniques are designed to do as efficiently as possible. And even physical violence that stops short of killing can inflict...