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10 Tips On Running a DMPC in D&D 5e

Wolgraff Divinity OS Kickstarter Art
Wolgraff Character Art from Divinity: Original Sin Kickstarter
Dungeon Master Player Characters. If you’ve played Dungeons & Dragons or Pathfinder long enough, you might have encountered a time when a Dungeon Master or Game Master tried to run their own character alongside the party. I’ve thought about this topic for awhile, having run DMPCs myself, and since Wizards of the Coast recently published their guide to running Sidekicks in D&D 5e, I figured it made sense to go into detail. Now, whereas the humble Hireling sidekick is a glorified waterboy played by a Player, a DMPC is a more capable character, perhaps even an adventurer in their own right. I figured I’d give my tips for any DM or GM out there who wants to run a DMPC properly. People like Sly Flourish have addressed at length mostly why you shouldn’t run them, and I recommend getting familiar with that reasoning. But, contrarian that I am, I think D&D 5e can actually work decently well with an occasional DMPC. How so? Well, let’s find out!

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The Breacher Rogue – D&D 5e Homebrew Path

"Infiltrator Is The New Rogue", by Brunofneves.
Rogues at Full Volume. Back from the holidays and having posted my OC D&D memes archive, this week I want to share the initial version of my first homebrew path for D&D 5e Players: the Breacher Rogue, who specializes in blasting open dramatic entrances and exits. I’d love your feedback, particularly on damage scaling, so that next week I can do the full NaturalCrit Homebrewery & DndBeyond postings for this homebrew path. Special thanks to Bruno of Neves for the image permission, and to Falibrand for their Sapper path on D&D Beyond, which I drew inspiration from in working on the Breacher.

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Roleplaying Intelligent Creatures in D&D 5e, P2: Hyper-Intelligence

otherworldly incantations hyper-intelligence
Monstrous Mindscapes. Have you ever struggled to roleplay intelligent creatures and NPCs in Dungeons & Dragons, or to fully understand their thought processes and strategies? After a brief detour in Tactical Roles & Creature Niches, this week I finish my D&D 5e series tackling guidelines for running hyper-intelligence. I detail various aspects of that and articulate how behavioral traits emerge as INT scores progress, concluding with my Intelligence Index graphic. And I flesh out my Intellect Archetypes system more, beginning to envision monstrous mindsets in detail. Using real D&D 5e creatures, not just conjecture. Let’s dive in!

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D&D 5e: Tactical Combat Roles & Empty Creature Niches

Otherworldly Incantations D&D 5e Tactical Roles
Tactical Roles and Creature Niches. Want to play your D&D 5e creatures and characters more tactically? Ever wonder what creature archetypes haven’t been filled yet? Look no further. While I continue to work on my series on roleplaying intelligent creatures, I let my Patrons vote on what to cover in the meantime. This week I introduce a system for mapping physical combat roles, and a handy chart of associated creatures. Theory and practice. Check it out!

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Roleplaying Intelligent Creatures in D&D 5e, P1: Low & Moderate INT

Otherworldly Incantations Monster Intelligence
Monstrous Mindscapes. Have you ever struggled to roleplay creatures in Dungeons & Dragons, or to fully understand their thought processes and strategies? After working on my D&D 5e Resource Compendium the last couple weeks, this week I decided to kick off a D&D 5e series tackling guidelines for running intelligent creatures, starting with low and moderate intelligence then working our way up. I’ve developed an Intelligence Index detailing various aspects of intelligence and articulating how behavioral traits emerge as INT scores progress. And I’ve started an Intellect Archetypes system as well, beginning to envision monstrous mindsets in more detail. Let’s take a look!

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Gamify Your Mental Health: 10 Simple Tools For Gamers & Geeks

Otherworldly Incantations Gamify Mental Health
neo scavenger screenshot Otherworldly Incantations mental health
Gamify your mental health. Last week I wrote about the secrets of difficulty in D&D 5e. This week, I want to talk about a different set of challenges: mental health. I want to explore how gamers and geeks like me can use game mechanics and the psychology of game design to level up our mental health, drawing upon lessons from survival games, RPGs, MMOs, and puzzles. Like a lot of folks, many of us gamers have some struggles in the area of mental health. Yeah, we can tend toward escapism. In fact, I’ll start off with a confession: I myself have struggled a lot with depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem in my life, among other issues. But I’ve had the fortune to learn and develop some mental tools on all this, and I want to share the the best ones with you, in two parts. To start, I’ll run through 10 tools then provide a summary of the gamification concepts at the end. Time to level up your brain!

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Beyond D&D 5e Challenge Rating: 20 Traits of Difficulty, Danger, and Death

dungeonmemer nope
Meme by DungeonMemer
Difficulty, Danger, and Death. Have you ever played Dungeons & Dragons, like D&D 5e, and noticed how Monster Encounter Difficulty becomes increasingly unpredictable at high-level? Ever wondered why? Conversely, ever had a low-level Total Party Kill (TPK)? The traits that really make encounters in D&D 5e difficult or dangerous, don’t always boil down to Challenge Rating. What makes for Deadly Encounters? Using this guide, you as a Dungeon Master can better balance encounters, or just adjust difficulty up or down dramatically. And you as a D&D Player can approach the game more tactically. I contrast Apparent Challenge Rating and Actual Challenge Rating, and discuss Challenge Rating Instability. Beyond just Action Economy Parity, inspired by projects like The Monsters Know, I examine how Supplies, Schema, Status, Space, Structure, and Strategy all shape Game Balance.

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The Ancients: Tips on Mythic Worldbuilding For Past Ages

Concept Art From Disney's Atlantis the Lost Empire
Concept Art from Disney's "Atlantis: The Lost Empire"
Lost Worlds and Hidden Legacies. Ancient Ages and Entities. Prophecies and Relics. This week I want to delve into the mythology of “the Ancients”, an ancestral ur-myth common throughout cultures and fiction. A topic that fills the air with mystery and intrigue, wonder and excitement. So here’s a deep dive for all you worldbuilders, Dungeon Masters, and Game Masters developing fictional cultures. For all you players in tabletop RPGs like D&D and Pathfinder working on your character backstories. And for storytellers and mythology fans more generally too. Anyone building cultural backdrops and character backstories relating to an antique age, building either lore or plot. Check it out!

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30 Gnomish Industrial Weapons For D&D 5e

Otherworldly Incantations gnomes are redneck steampunk mages
Gnomish Industrial Weapons. One part steampunk, one part mage, and one part redneck, Gnomes have captured the imagination of many a worldbuilder. After my post on Evil Overlord Lairs I wanted to make some new weapons for Dungeons & Dragons, D&D 5e specifically, that fit with my homebrew world of Yridia, where reclusive mountain Gnomes hide a latent post-cataclysmic industrialism. Occasionally, their recon and expeditionary forces encounter adventuring parties! Not intended for normal vendors or perfect game balance, Dungeon Masters can use these items against D&D players, or let them access some as unique magic weapons.

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Top 20 Elements of Evil Overlord Lairs

Otherworldly Incantations Evil Overlord Lairs

Evil. Overlord. Lairs. Happy Spooktober everyone! Following my post on Gritty Gaming, I’ve brewed up a nice little recipe for Dungeon Masters and worldbuilders who want to design the most dastardly of dungeons: an Evil Overlord Lair! And I’ve included some simple notes on narrative exposition and encounter ideas for each element too. With this I plan to kick off a periodic series on Villainry. Enjoy!

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