RPGBOT.Podcast

In this episode of the RPGBOT.Podcast, we discuss initiative and surprise mechanics in TTRPGs. We examine how initiative and surprise work in DnD 5e and how people are using it wrong, we compare 5e to other RPGs including Pathfinder 2e and The One Ring, and we explore some variant initiative options which you might use in your own games.

If you've enjoyed the show, please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, and rate us on Spotify or your favorite podcast app. It's a quick, free way to support the podcast, and helps us reach new listeners. You can find links in the show notes.

MATERIALS REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE

RPGBOT.Podcast Episodes

• RPGBOT.News – Caleb Valorozo-Jones on Neurodiversity in TTRPGs
• RPGBOT.Podcast Season 2 Episode 1 – Variant Rules

Dungeons and Dragons 5e

• Player's Handbook (affiliate link)
• Dungeon Master's Guide (affiliate link)

Pathfinder 2e

• Core Rulebook (affiliate link)
• Gamemastery Guide (affiliate link)

Other Stuff

• Alien RPG
• Easy Roller Dice's Hollow Metal Dice (affiliate link)
• Fantasy Flight Star Wars (affiliate link)
• Mörk Borg
• The One Ring 2e

In this episode of the RPGBOT.News, we discuss Garycon 14 and share some pull-aside interviews with the wonderful people we met at Garycon.

If you've enjoyed the show, please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, and rate us on Spotify or your favorite podcast app. It's a quick, free way to support the podcast, and helps us reach new listeners. You can find links in the show notes.

People Interviews in This Episode

Interviewees are listed in order of appearance.

Daniel Fisher

• Hammered Game Tables
• Facebook, Instagram, Twitter

Yolanda Frontany, Jeremiah, and Austin

• The Birthplace of DnD
• IndieGoGo campaign to preserve the home of Dungeons and Dragons

Daniel Colwell, Michael Paylor, Bill Supplanta

• Griffin and Gargoyle

Alexander Stangroom

• Kobold Press
• Kobold Guide to Worldbuilding Volume 2
• Tome of Beasts 2
• Tome of Beasts 3
• Deep Magic
• Vault of Magic
• Tome of Heroes

Bill Webb, Zach Glazar

• Frog God Games
• Splinters of Faith on Kickstarter
• Tome of Alchemy
• Book of Lost Spells
• Rapan Athuk

Alex Kammer

• Gamehole Con
• True Dungeon

Luke Gygax

• Garycon
• Heart of Chentoufi on Kickstarter
• Twitter

If you've enjoyed the show, please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, and rate us on Spotify or your favorite podcast app. It's a quick, free way to support the podcast, and helps us reach new listeners. You can find links in the show notes.

MATERIALS REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE

RPGBOT.Podcast Episodes

• How to Play Dungeons and Dragons Playlist on Spotify

Dungeons and Dragons 5e

• Dungeon Master's Guide (affiliate link)

Pathfinder 2e

• Core Rulebook (affiliate link)
• Gamemastery Guide (affiliate link)

• Core Rulebook (affiliate link)
• Starter Set (affiliate link)
• Lore Master Screen and Rivendell Compendium (affiliate link)
• Physical Copies

If you've enjoyed the show, please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, and rate us on Spotify or your favorite podcast app. It's a quick, free way to support the podcast, and helps us reach new listeners. You can find links in the show notes.

MATERIALS REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE

RPGBOT.Podcast Episodes

• RPGBOT.podcast Episode 3 – Metacurrencies in Tabletop RPGs

If you've enjoyed the show, please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, and rate us on Spotify or your favorite podcast app. It's a quick, free way to support the podcast, and helps us reach new listeners. You can find links in the show notes.

Special thanks from Producer Dan [the @Lzr_illuminati,] to @Cross2Killer, @Stubbenz, and @Winglady for helping us get the volume levels and mix sorted out.

MATERIALS REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE

• Dungeons and Dragons 5e
• Call of the Netherdeep (affiliate link)
• Explorer's Guide to Wildemount (affiliate link)
• Unearthed Arcana: Heroes of Krynn
• Unearthed Arcana: Waterborne Adventures

If you've enjoyed the show, please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, and rate us on Spotify or your favorite podcast app. It's a quick, free way to support the podcast, and helps us reach new listeners. You can find links in the show notes.

MATERIALS REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE

RPGBOT.Podcast Episodes

• RPGBOT.Podcast Episode 4 – Failure, with special guest Colby of the Crit Fails Podcast

Dungeons and Dragons 5e

• Player's Handbook (affiliate link)
• Tales from the Yawning Portal (affiliate link)
• Tasha's Cauldron of Everything (affiliate link)

Subscribe to dScryb (affiliate link). Use coupon code "RPGBOT" for 10% off the first month of your Hero tier subscription.

If you've enjoyed the show, please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, and rate us on Spotify or your favorite podcast app. It's a quick, free way to support the podcast, and helps us reach new listeners. You can find links in the show notes.

MATERIALS REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE

• Scenes from dScryb (affiliate links)
• Amiable Jack – Random's character from the RPGBOT.Oneshot episodes
• Candle of Diligent Labors
• Dead Tree in a Swamp
• Georg – Tyler's character from the RPGBOT.Oneshot episodes
• Shrine Forest
• dScryb March Giveaway – Six Issues of Crucible Magazine + Four dScryb Player Subscriptions + One Year of dScryb Hero Membership

In this episode of the RPGBOT.Podcast, we discuss Session 0. We discuss pitching game ideas, establishing expectations, TTRPG safety tools, and collaborative character creation. We recommend and discuss some helpful tools like pre-game surveys, the "X Card", improv games, and tools like Decuma and Curse of Strahd's Tarroka deck.

Special thanks to @Winglady14 on Twitter and on the RPGBOT.Discord for the question of the week.

If you've enjoyed the show, please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, and rate us on Spotify or your favorite podcast app. It's a quick, free way to support the podcast, and helps us reach new listeners. You can find links in the show notes.

MATERIALS REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE

RPGBOT.Podcast Episodes

• RPGBOT.Podcast Episode 7 – Character Optimization
• RPGBOT.Podcast Episode 9 – Death
• RPGBOT.Podcast S2 E8 – Adapting Media to a Tabletop RPG (Part 1)
• RPGBOT.News – Caleb Valorozo-Jones on Neurodiversity in TTRPGs
• RPGBOT.News – Jonathan G. Nelson of AAW Games

Articles from RPGBOT.net

• General – Party Relationships
• General – Pre-Game Survey

Dungeons and Dragons 5e

• Curse of Strahd (affiliate link)
• Eberron: Rising from the Last War (affiliate link)
• Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden (affiliate link)
• Tasha's Cauldron of Everything (affiliate link)

Other Stuff

• Decuma from Golden Lasso Games (affiliate link)
• Dungeons: The Dragoning 40,000 7th Edition (This is the creator's blogspot blog, and yes the official download is from Mediafire)
• Firefly
• Red Hand of Doom (affiliate link)
• Rise of the Runelords (affiliate link)
• Tabletop Simulator on Steam
• The One Ring 2nd Edition (affiliate link)
• Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (affiliate link)

Due to the length of the episode, we've split this episode into two parts. Whenever you're ready, enjoy part 2, where the hosts explore Random and Tyler's example media and answer the question of the week.

MATERIALS REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE

• Doctor Terry Macmullan @PhilosphyDM

RPGBOT.Podcast Episodes

• RPGBOT.podcast Episode 0 – The Adventure Begins
• RPGBOT.podcast Episode 3 – Metacurrencies in Tabletop RPGs

Dungeons and Dragons 5e

• Player's Handbook (affiliate link) or the Basic Rules
• Alignment

DnD 3.5

Alignment

• Atonement – It got rolled into Ceremony in DnD 5e
• Helm of Opposite Alignment – Did not make it into 5e

Other Stuff

• Adventurer's League
• Ayn Rand
• Buffy the Vampire Slayer
• Breaking Bad
• Friedrich Nietzsche
• Immanuel Kant
• Jane Addams
• Jeremy Bentham
• John Rawls
• John Stuart Mill
• Man in the Iron Mask
• Peter Singer
• Socrates
• The Addiction