In this transient episode, Jose and Andrew dive into the deep Ethereal to discuss the planes of existence. They marvel at the resplendence of the Feywild, fall deep into the Plane of Air, have a grounded discussion over the Plane of Earth, get flared up over the Plane of Fire, and dip their toes in the Plane of Water and so much more. Once they’re back home in terra firma, they then discuss session highlights, and how they might have found a little warmth in the brutal cold of Icewind Dale

In this bellyaching episode the DM Duo whine about warlocks, get flustered over fetch quests, show vitriol at vagueness, and get sour about source material as they discuss the many petty things they don’t like about 5th edition. Once they’re done kicking and screaming about the incredibly small details that honestly don’t do anything to diminish a past time that has taken over their lives, they then go over the things they do like about 5th edition in the form of session highlights. Then they briefly touch on some upcoming materials from Wizards of the Coast, including a horror setting not mentioned in Van Richten’s…college!

In this war torn episode, Andrew walks the battlements, observing to a nearby FNG that he loves the smell of Alchemist Fire in the morning and that today is a good day to die. Meanwhile, Jose is deep in the archives, furiously scribbling scrolls for a spell to summon the dogs of war with others of scribes, hoping to whatever god they worship the paladin was able to get the proper funding to better defend against the enemy army that matches on their door. Somewhere a bard plays “Fortunate Son”. We’re talking about large-scale and wartime combat today folks, about morale and siege engines and the like, and how we feel they can be better integrated into the 5e system. Then after the dust has settled, and the dead have been carted off, the two talk about session highlights of a much colder place.

There are tales of epic heroism, Tales of great adventures in the face of mortal peril overcoming overwhelming odds. Tales of world shaking events, tales of great cosmic power are used to better the world. This is not that tale. This is the tale of Gary, the ⅛ CR commoner. A man so underwhelming that white toast seems exotic by comparison. A man who’s idea of a deadly random encounter is if a passerby sneezes on him. A man who’s BBEG is simply death and taxes. Why are we talking about Gary? Listen and find out, plus we speculate on what’s to come in the future for 5e settings!

We go deep into the red tape with this episode as we talk about the many factions of the Forgotten Realms. From the bureaucratic to the heroic, from the morally grey to the obviously evil, we go over the many webs weaved throughout and even without the Sword Coast. But once we wash our hands of the politics, we discuss the potential of the upcoming adventure in the Feywild, followed by our look into the upcoming Worlds of Web DM book, The Weird Wastelands!

As we complete our Descent into Avernus (and madness) the DMs discuss what’s the best way to unwind after a long campaign, that doesn’t involve a copious amount of alcohol. They discuss lessons learned, future prospects, and touch on what they felt were the best part of this campaign. But then they get the band back together for a Q and A as Jose grapples with his greatest nemesis: Constructive criticism.

In this free flowing episode, Andrew takes Jose on a magic carpet ride to show him the world (that exists only in his brain) as they traverse the primeval unknown that is Homebrewing. Fearlessly braving the parts of the actual Forgotten Realms, they discover that maybe D&D doesn’t come from premade adventures that you buy at the store, maybe D&D means something a little bit more. Just kidding the premade stuff is good too, so as long as you have fun with it. And then they talk about freaky as hell cats in the upcoming book, so that’s cool.

Today we talk about the multi-eye, maniac madman of the monster manual: the beholder! From paranoia to psychotic dreams to the part where [REDACTED] and then vomit out [REDACTED] and then have to [OH GOD REDACTED], we briefly cover the different flavors of fun the beholders go into, but then take a deeper dive into what makes them one of the best monsters of D&D, and how they can (and should) ultimately crush a party. After that, we bask in the afterglow of what was probably the best session of the campaign.

In this episode, Jose and Andrew gear up with the Survey Corps and go straight for the nape of the neck as they decide to tackle the big boys of Faerun: Giants! They go over the questionable but admittedly par for the course origin story of giant mythology, with adultery and bloodshed abound, before delving a tiny bit into the rich lore of each type of giant. Then they confront the elephant in the room: the blandness of the stat block, but fear not for they spice things up with heretical talk of home brewing monsters!

Today on A Talk of Opportunity we talk about the one pillar that can honestly make or break an encounter: Combat! We discuss the stress of having to run combat, and reflect on how we feel we can spice up our own experiences with it. Then things get a bit hazy as we talk about what even is initiative and how it’s actually just a construct, before gently settling down and talking about some good old campaign highlights.