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Total Pebble Knockdown episodes
- 52. Slenderclown
On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:
- It is our season one finale, a time to look back on where we’ve gone in the past year and what we plan on doing in the future. Guests? Livestreams? More obscure videos? Let’s find out on a very close-to-home Weekly Muse
- It’s the last chapter in our spoopy fest and we have saved the worst for last: CLOWNS! We go into why clowns are scary and how you can make them even more terrifying. It’s not just a cliche circus either. Imagine clowns… in space! An abandoned space children’s hospital! Yeah.
D&D Reveals Creepy Origin Of Clowns In The Multiverse (screenrant.com)
The Clown - Dungeon Masters Guild | Dungeon Masters Guild (dmsguild.com)
- We’re going to try another wacky RPG experiment. This time, we are playing Build-A-Quest where we take random phrases and turn them into quest names. On the theme of space, we work from the title forward on three common phrases to see what the quests are about, how the party stumbles into them and what the resolution might be.
1 hr 3 min - 51. Suplex the Trolley
On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:
- Everybody get on the trolley. Oh no, some people are tied to the tracks! What shall we do? On this Crit Think, Nathan subjects Alex to a few of his homebrewed trolley problems to see how cruel he is toward the poor people about to be run over.
An overview of the trolley problem - What is the 'Trolley Problem?’ | Merriam-Webster
- Last of the One D&D expert classes to analyze, we dig into the Ranger. Have they finally solved the ranger problem with this revised version? We look over the draft material as well as the Hunter subclass to find out.
An overview of One D&D changes - One D&D Class Changes (& How They Affect You) (screenrant.com)
- Time for more spooptacular with skeletons. Frankly, they aren't very scary, but we seek to fix that in this episode. Can we raise the traditional skeletons spooposity and can we stop using that word soon?
D&D Skeletons - Skeleton - Monsters - D&D Beyond (dndbeyond.com)
1 hr 10 min - 50. Old Man Jenkins was a Ghost the Whole Time!
On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:
- Steam is having a Next Fest with tons of demos for upcoming video games. Nathan got the chance to play a few of these games. Some of these were good, some were mediocre and one was basically unplayable. Find out which are which in this Weekly Muse.
- Some more discussion on draft material of One D&D because of course. This time, we'll talk a little about The Rogue, which has not had such drastic changes as other classes from 5E, but get some tweeks to make them the best rogue they can be.
A little overview of One D&D changes - https://screenrant.com/one-dnd-dungeons-dragons-class-changes-characters-builds/
- Because it's the most spoopy time of the year, we're continuing our look at traditionally scary monsters in gaming. This time we get to look at g-g-g-ghosts. Will they haunt our hotel? Will they possess our PC? Will they teach us how to do pottery? Terrifying!
The ghost in D&D 5E - https://www.dndbeyond.com/monsters/16871-ghost
1 hr 11 min - 49. Bardstein
On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:
- Star Citizen, the game that still has not actually been released, just passed $500 million in funding. We still have no idea when the game is coming out, but there are rumblings about sequels. Anyways, let’s discuss this milestone after 10 years in development.
Star Citizen Crowdfunds Half a Billion Dollars - and $100 Million In Less Than a Year - IGN
Star Citizen has now raised more than half a billion dollars in crowdfunding | Eurogamer.net
Star Citizen developer lays out increasingly ambitious five-year plan | Eurogamer.net
Star Citizen - Any Day Now™ - YouTube
- One D&D has even more draft material and it was quite a large info dump. A nearly 40 page document was released concerning expert classes and feats. On this Mechanically Speaking, we’re looking specifically at changes to the bard. Are the band kids even better than they were before or have they failed to make nationals?
- It is the spookiest time of the year and so our thoughts turn to things that go bump in the night. On this first part of our Spoopy or Not, we look at zombies. Are they a dangerous plague to be feared or an annoying obstacle to shopping at the mall? How many spoops do we give zombies? Only one way to find out.Zombie - Monsters - D&D Beyond (dndbeyond.com)
57 min - 48. A Bardic Troupe of Chipmunks
On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:
- So, a lot of discussion has been going on around player character death, so let’s discuss what you can do with characters once they die. Perhaps they can have a fun adventure in the afterlife, fight some demons, haunt the living, reincarnate, be a rat therapist… okay, we might go off the rails here.
- Cozy games are an ever-growing genre of video games, but it’s mostly been in the hands of indie developers. However, with Dreamlight Valley, Disney has entered the arena. Alex, Craeve and Nathan have all been playing it since it released in early access and has some thoughts on what worked and what did not. We’ll also discuss how it stacks up to some other similar games we’ve played recently.
- Have you ever heard of a Coffeelock? Legend has it that there is a spell caster with unlimited spell slots. But are the legends true? Okay, let’s discuss what this is and how the D&D mechanics allow for it. What limitations can be placed on this and how has it already been addressed in Xanathar’s Guide to Everything?
A summary of the Coffeelock - Dungeons and Dragons: What is a Coffeelock? (geeknative.com)
Animated Spellbook - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dkpa1j1yYqQ
53 min - 47. Astral Plane-ology
On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:
- In Weekly Muse, is Matt Mercer a terrible DM? This is something we decided to discuss following comments on the most recent Critical Role episode. So, we're going to talk about how dangerous a world should be, what the consequences are for a player's actions and other ways to slam players when things go wrong. We will also answer that question. WARNING: Spoilers.
Spoiler Report - Critical Role Shocks Fans With Its Most Intense Episode Yet (comicbook.com)
- Nathan recently played Death Stranding and came to a fascinating discovery that the landscape hates Norman Reedus. So how does the navigation of the landscape work as gameplay? Every rock, every stream, every inclined slope is now your enemy, far more intense a foe than the actual guys with guns that start shooting your bike. Was this a good design choice? We'll discuss.
- While looking at Reddit, a question caught our eye about a bag of holding tactical nuke and it piqued our interest. So, how does this work and should it? Are there ways to keep players from constantly using this tactic to destroy the game or unforeseen consequences for them?
The Reddit comments of relevance - How to stop combat from revolving around a tactical nuke? : DMAcademy (reddit.com)
Artificer Bag of Holding Bomb? : dndnext (reddit.com)
1 hr 3 min - 46. Sleep Debt Storage Amulet
On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:
- Are you getting enough sleep? Not in real life, we already know the answer to that is "No". Instead, are you getting enough sleep in games? We're looking at sleep, resting, curfews and other annoyances that games will use to make you end your business day, even if you were doing something cool. Does this work? Should it be changed? Are there better ways to use the nature of sleep to engage players rather than distract them?
- Your players walk into a bar and set off on a grand adventure. But, why are they together? Seriously, why is the warlock, the paladin and the rogue even working together in the first place? How do we explain how an adventuring party of such different backgrounds come together to fell a power-hungry tree? Would the druid have a problem with that? Let's have a Crit Think about that.
- Although D&D is a TTRPG we are very familiar with, Nathan is seeking to expand his horizons. And to familiarize himself with some of those toehr systems, he recently tried Pathfinder: Kingmaker and Shadowrun: Honk Kong. Did they do a good job explaining the system? Did they make him much excite for the tabletop version? Did he get very, very confused? Only one way to find out...
1 hr 9 min - 45. Multiverses of Magic
On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:
- On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown: Wizard Presents 2022 gave us many big announcements concerning Dungeons and Dragons and Magic: The Gathering. We are somewhat familiar with these things, so let's break down some of the big announcements, from Warhammer cards to the upcoming supplements to the huge One D&D reveal.
Wizard Presents 2022
- So, One D&D was a big announcement, but what can we expect from the updated rules? Luckily, Wizards released some draft material for character design and Nathan took a look at the material. Let's look at some of the more intriguing parts like backgrounds, feats, spell lists, languages and traits. How do they stack up to the current rules?
- While much of the One D&D draft material has promise, one particular rule was a sticking point for Nathan and he thought to pass it on to Alex, who now has a similar sticking point. And that would be: The DM doesn't crit. So, what are the design benefits to allowing the DM to crit? We discuss the nature of tension, lethality in combat and stabby goblins.
53 min - 44. Three Segments You Didn't Think We'd Make
On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:
- If you have ever watched a movie or TV show, played a game or read a book, you have probably noticed some typical character archetypes. At a certain point these become tropes that are easy to fall back on as writing devices. But does that mean you should play one in your games? We look at a list of 15 character tropes to see how these could work in your games and whether they should. Along the way, we find the worst character tropes that are being addressed today and talk about Shrek more than you might think.
Our trope-down list - Character Tropes — 15 Common Character Types Explained (studiobinder.com)
- We have even more tropes. This time we look at 10 RPG tropes that are (apparently) not around anymore. We may take issue with that assertion. Is it just wishful thinking that high fantasy settings or impractical costumes are going by the wayside? We’ll break down this list while asking if we still see or want these in our games.
The next trope-down list - 10 Classic RPG Tropes That Aren't Around Anymore (gamerant.com)
Our video about leveling - How Fast Should You Level In RPGs? | Mechanically Speaking - YouTube
- And thus, even more tropes. This time, we look at 6 RPG tropes that are not actually fun. What tropes have gotten to a place that they are aggravating for players and why should we avoid them?
Yes, it’s another trope list - Six Classic Roleplaying Tropes That Aren’t Actually Fun – Mythcreants
1 hr 42 min - 43. Chaotic Goodwill
On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:
- While magic items may often be powerful, they can also prove to be rare and expensive. But what about secondhand magic items? You know, the “gently used” items pawned off to a traveling merchant for resale? What if your players got ahold of those? We ponder the possibilities of broken, worn and mysterious used items that have more intrigue than your standard fare and might not break the bank to acquire.
- Leveling can be an exciting and important mechanic in games, but how often are you supposed to do so? In this Mechanically Speaking, we talk about the frequency of leveling and how the pacing of it effects a player’s relationship to the game. And what should the average timeframe be between levels? It matters.
- Tanks spend much of their character development avoiding damage, but a GM might still want to provide dangerous situations for them. In this One More Thing though, we look at a Reddit post suggesting we should stop trying to hit the tanks and instead give them something else to worry about.
58 min
About Total Pebble Knockdown
From the publisher's feed
In weekly discussions that result in absolutely no clear answers, Nathan and Alex delve into the endless choices that make up games. What can we learn from video games, storytelling, and the real…
world, and how can we apply that to tabletop games?