Episode 143 of Mastering Dungeons! 


This week's main topic: Celeste Conowitch on Designing Tales of the Valiant!
What does it take to design a new variant of D&D? Hear the valiant tales of Celeste Conowitch, Senior Game Designer at Kobold Press! 
News: Upper Deck Sues Ravensburger, 2024 Update, Final Rivals Stream, Creator Spotlight, and more!
Contents00:00 Shawn Issues00:55 DM Fiat?04:59 2024 Concern? 11:10 Go-To Adventure?14:15 Community Update and Video18:54 AL Stream20:34 Upper Deck Lawsuit22:27 Final Rivals Stream24:02 Creator Spotlight24:38 Core20 RPG25:52 Last Caravan27:07 Curse of Vecna28:25 Celeste Conowitch!35:12 Valiant Kickstarter37:00 Project Inception43:38 Playtest Lessons49:00 Teamwork51:25 Goals and Targets55:54 Kickstarter Success59:01 What Comes Next?1:05:42 Shout-OutsThank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.

Mastering Dungeons - Designing Tales of the Valiant with Celeste Conowitch!

RPG veterans and game designers Teos Abadía and Shawn Merwin look at the game and the hobby of D&D from a variety of viewpoints: reporting the news, understanding the business, reviewing the products, and illuminating the design.  Whether you’re a fan, a player, a DM, or a designer, Shawn and Teos cover topics of interest to you!

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Episode 188 of Mastering Dungeons! 


Main topic: Daggerheart Review – Character Creation!
A nine-step process provides a robust mix of crunch and narrative options. See what this blend tells us about this and other RPGs.
News: Hasbro’s Q1 Results, WotC Completing the PH, Roll20 Discord Integration, and more!
Contents00:00 Far Out02:26 Vecna Prequel Review04:12 Monster Hunter06:05 Backgrounds Approach?11:23 Age and Time?19:53 BG3 for Other Stories?26:23 D&D Fireside Chat35:13 Hasbro Q143:04 Roll20 Discord Integration44:32 Star Trek 2E Quickstart45:57 D&D Beyond Seeks Writers48:57 Hypersleep Terminated50:39 Daggerheart Classes!54:09 9-Step Character Creation55:07 Step 1. Choose Class01:00:26 Character Sheet01:02:51 Step 2. Heritage01:05:23 Step 3. Traits01:10:15 Step 4. Evasion, HPs, Stress and Hope01:13:34 Step 5. Equipment01:15:17 Step 6. Background Questions01:18:26 Step 7. Experiences01:30:40 Step 8. Domain Cards01:36:35 Step 9. Create Connections01:43:39 Shout-OutsThank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.
Our intro and outro music is Metropolis Fanfare, provided royalty-free by Tabletop Audio (https://tabletopaudio.com) under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

Daggerheart’s Character Creation (MD 188)

Episode 187 of Mastering Dungeons! 


Main topic: Daggerheart Review – Core Rules!
Hope, Fear, Stress, and so much more! We take a look at Daggerheart’s design and how it encourages narrative and tactical gameplay.
News: WotC President Departs, Colville on Adventure Length, DriveThru Sales Data, and more!
Contents00:00 Deck of Campaign Derailments02:45 Reworking Design?07:51 Best Adventure Format?15:52 Fix D&D Like MTG?19:02 Cynthia Williams Departs26:20 D&D Maps Tips27:39 Colville on Adventure Length34:54 DriveThru Sales Data38:13 Daggerheart and Demiplane40:05 Daggerheart Playtest43:07 Our Playtests49:20 Core System - Hope and Fear52:00 d12s v d2058:00 Hope as a Fuel59:44 Defenses and Health01:03:06 Stress01:05:10 Resting and Choices01:07:48 Narrative vs Tactical01:12:23 Character Sheet01:16:48 Shout-OutsThank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.
Our intro and outro music is Metropolis Fanfare, provided royalty-free by Tabletop Audio (https://tabletopaudio.com) under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

Daggerheart Review: Core Rules (MD 187)

Episode 186 of Mastering Dungeons! 


Main topic: How to Keep Your New Campaign Healthy and Strong!
If the average campaign lasts only 3-5 sessions, how do we avoid that fate and maintain a healthy long-term campaign?
News: Hasbro CEO Interview Reimagined, Vecna is Coming, Fallout TV Sells RPG, and more!
Contents00:00 Kids are Alright01:39 The Black Ballad03:42 Is 5E Indirectly Modular?12:45 Fallout TV Sells Books15:49 Hasbro CEO Interview Reimagined25:13 Vecna is Coming27:28 Lich PCs29:44 Nest of the Eldritch Eye33:18 Organized Play from Gamehole37:00 D&D Blackmilk Clothing40:05 Monsters of Drakkenheim41:55 Keep Campaign Healthy and Strong43:58 1. The Right Players47:51 2. Right Campaign for the Players49:49 3. Right-Sized Session Zero56:49 4. Regular Flexible Schedule01:00:14 5. End Date01:03:04 6. Strong Campaign Start01:03:33 7. Engage Between Sessions01:08:19 8. Room for Changes01:08:48 9. Frequent Check-Ins01:10:30 10. Climactic End01:16:37 Shout-OutsThank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.
Our intro and outro music is Metropolis Fanfare, provided royalty-free by Tabletop Audio (https://tabletopaudio.com) under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

Keep a New Campaign Healthy and Strong (MD 186)

Episode 185 of Mastering Dungeons! 


Main topic: Designing Player-Facing Options for New Campaigns!
How do you create or leverage player-facing rules that will intrigue them and ground them in your new world and your new campaign? How do you give them meaningful, informed choices early in the campaign?
News: Prep vs Improv? Dimension 20 in the Garden, Schwalb on 5E, and more!
Contents00:00 Path of Totality01:16 Prep vs Improv?08:57 Con for Crits?20:22 D20 at the Garden22:10 Schwalb on Taberna26:54 Encounter Tables32:47 Infestation at Devil's Glade34:13 Fantasy AGE Quickstart34:51 Oops all Hit Dice37:40 Player-Facing Campaign Options38:54 New Rules or Limitations41:53 Communicate Changes49:52 New Player-Facing Rules54:52 Custom Backgrounds59:24 Class Challenges01:02:58 Subclasses01:04:43 Feats01:05:52 Subsystem01:07:06 Involve Quickly01:08:42 Dragonlance Example01:11:32 Reinforce through Scenes01:14:17 Subsystems Early01:15:56 Shout-OutsThank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.
Our intro and outro music is Metropolis Fanfare, provided royalty-free by Tabletop Audio (https://tabletopaudio.com) under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

Design Player-Facing Campaign Options (MD 185)

Episode 184 of Mastering Dungeons! 


Main topic:
Design an RPG Starting Encounter!
Continuing the discussion of designing a first adventure in our world, how do we design the first adventure? We look at creating an encounter that utilizes our setting, hooks, and plays off of the PCs!
News: Core Book Prices, Free Tsojcanth and LEGO Adventures, D&D Sales Drop!
Contents00:00 Two Fools01:28 Adventure Curriculum?12:34 MCDM Daggerheart Initiative?19:37 Flaws Mechanic?30:27 D&D Beyond Kickstarter Reward35:45 Core Book Prices36:52 Most of Hobby is Down40:52 Free Tsojcanth44:24 Free LEGO Adventure48:48 Design an RPG Starting Encounter50:00 Use What You Set Down51:53 Encounter Goals53:10 Don't Overwhelm54:46 Setting Considerations58:32 Theme and Tone01:01:55 Antagonists01:04:34 Allies and NPCs01:06:13 Duration and Pacing01:09:32 Session 0 Promises01:12:48 Play off PCs01:15:38 Satisfying Conclusion01:19:24 Cliffhangers?01:21:39 Final Checklist01:25:04 Shout-OutsThank you for listening! Get the full show notes with links on Patreon.
Our intro and outro music is Metropolis Fanfare, provided royalty-free by Tabletop Audio (https://tabletopaudio.com) under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
MP3 file metadata populated with Online MP3 Podcast Chapter Editor, built by Dominik Peters. https://mp3chapters.github.io/ and customized for Mastering Dungeons by Vladimir Prenner from Croatia.

Mastering Dungeons - Designing Tales of the Valiant with Celeste Conowitch!

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