Emily

Hey y’all! I’m Emily.

Sierra

And I’m Sierra. Today we’re going to share our tips on how to roleplay.

Emily

To start off, let’s quickly define roleplaying as it’s stated in the D&D 5e Player's Handbook: “Roleplaying is literally the act of playing out a role. In this case it’s you, as a player, determining how your character thinks, acts, and talks.”

Sierra

There are three main ways you can approach roleplaying in a TTRPG. Descriptive, active, or a blend of both, like in the Harbingers D&D Campaign. 

Emily

Descriptive roleplaying is where you would describe your characters emotions and attitude. For example a descriptive roleplay comment would sound like, 

“My character walks up to your character in the bar and tries to convince you to join her on a monster hunting quest.” 

This kind of roleplay focuses on their character’s intent and how others would perceive it. You can provide as much embellishment as you feel comfortable with.

Sierra

Active Roleplaying is closer to what an actual actor may do and tends to be more in depth. You speak in your character’s voice, use “I” instead of your character's name when describing your actions, and say what actions you take without including how the action is meant to be interpreted. For example, an active comment would sound like, 

“I walk up to Phillip with a smile on my face. I hear you’re skilled with a bow, My party could use someone like that. How much gold would it take for you to switch parties?”

Emily

Additionally, you may choose to use a mixture of these styles, as showcased in our D&D Livestream- the Harbingers. In the campaign, my players would do simple descriptions of their actions as time passed on the boat. Mostly when cooking meals or educating the resident children. In addition to having the descriptive roleplay moments, they would also have active roleplay scenes in which they would converse in-character with one another and even with the NPCs.

Sierra

To help with roleplaying your character, you can pick some character traits beforehand that your character might showcase throughout the campaign. Maybe your character is obsessive about taking notes, always gives money to beggars, or thinks all monsters look really cute. It can also help if you have some memorable quirks, or tells, such as biting their nails when nervous, stuttering when in front of someone they like, or always scratching  their coins to make sure they’re real.

Emily

Your character can also have traits that are influenced by their background. For example, someone with a sailor background might always try to relate their conversations to the sea, or sing sea shanties. Additionally you may choose to have an accent. Accents can be really fun and they help build an identity for your character. Just know that you do not have to have an accent if you don’t want to do it. Your character is your own!

Sierra

An important part of roleplaying is to build off of the other players, or in other words, doing improv. Improv means to act without a guide or script of where things are going. A common practice is the "Yes and…" statement. If someone says they have a purple pet dinosaur, you agree that what they said is true and add to the statement by saying the dinosaur ate all your rations one time.

Emily

You can also use the phrase, “No but…” to redirect the story without negating the statement. For example someone might say “This town is full of dinosaurs.” and in response you say, “No, it’s not full of dinosaurs, but it does have 1, I’ve seen it.” Be careful using the “no, but” statement as you don’t want to use it terribly often and make it so no one else feels like they can come up with ideas.

Sierra

Now we’re headed into the “What not to do section!” The, DON’Ts of roleplaying.

Emily

DON’T use “That’s what my character would do” as an excuse for bad behavior. An example of this would be from a campaign that I played in a long time ago. I had a character who was constantly being degraded in-game by my party members. Several times my soft and hard boundaries were broken, and out of game I told them to stop, but they continued with the excuse being, “That’s what my character would do.” When I tried to get the Dungeon Master to talk to them out of game to stop, they were unhappy. They ultimately decided to disintegrate my character in-game under the guise of, “that’s what my character would do,” but in-game their characters had no real reason to do so as my character had only been helpful the entire game.

Sierra

Not cool.

Emily

Yeah, I was personally really hurt by this. The phrase, “That’s what my character would do” should not be used to justify harming another player. Instead, this phrase should be used IN-game to help direct your character's actions. For example, in the Harbingers D&D Campaign, Dusty knew he was taking a test in which he had to follow a path to the end and not stray. He knew that if he strayed, he would fail the test. Off the side of the path, he heard the cries of a baby sand manta.

Sierra

Now Dusty was at a crossroads. He could either stick to the test and succeed or fail by going off the path. Greg knew out of game that he needed to go through the door at the end of the path but his character, Dusty, would want to go off the path to help the sand manta.

Emily

Now this is what the phrase, “that’s what my character would do,” was meant for. Greg decided to make Dusty leave the path, knowing full well that he needed to stay in order to succeed. He just knew that his character, Dusty, would leave the path and help the sand manta. This ended in an amazing roleplay experience where he showcased Dusty’s morality.

Sierra

The next DON’T is, don’t steal the show. Everyone wants to be the hero. It’s great to jump in and help or be the one to take down the bad guy, but if you do this EVERY time, no one else gets a chance to shine. D&D is not about being the only one to walk away from the epic explosion behind you. It’s about walking away from the explosion with your friends beside you. So make sure to let everyone have their hero moment and do what you can to include your friends into the roleplays.

Emily

DON’T view the Dungeon Master as an enemy! You’re all coming together to have a fun time storytelling together. So make sure it’s fun for everyone, DM included. Yes, they play the monsters and the evil NPCs, but a good DM is actively wanting you to succeed. 

Sierra

In Emily’s first campaign, we were hired as guards to protect a merchant ship but the party was upset because they wanted to chase some monsters and the Captain, Captain Killian, said no. This didn’t sit well with the party as they were already upset from her delaying half their payment until the job was done. So the party became enraged and they started yelling at Captain Killian. 

Emily

At this point, I had 7 out of the 8 players yelling at me at the top of their lungs and I was feeling very attacked personally with how much anger was in their voices. We eventually had to take a break where everyone stepped away from the game to cool off, and I went to cry in the bathroom. After we all calmed down and came back, Sierra and I talked with the rest of the party about how I (Emily) was not their enemy. They were just frustrated with Captain Killian, an IN-game NPC.

Sierra

In contrast to this, Emily and I had a VERY intense argument in game between my character and a gnome princess NPC during the same campaign, however, this argument was really fun for both of us. The argument was fun because we would pause as we fought and, out of game, do a short check in to make sure we were both aware the anger was in game and that neither of us felt attacked. This was a great roleplay and we still fondly talk about this argument years later.    

Emily

This brings us to the final don’t. Don’t bring in personal conflicts. When you bring outside problems into the game, it makes the game feel toxic and ultimately hurts other people. I remember one time where a friend of mine attacked my little sister in the game because he had a disagreement with me outside of the game. My younger sister was in tears because of what he did. If you’re upset with someone you're playing with out of game, make sure it stays out of game. Otherwise you ruin the fun of D&D and hurt the people closest to you. No one will want to play with someone who takes their outside problems into the game.

Sierra

You can have the intense roleplays, the grand betrayal of the party, or even the really intense arguments in-game, but to do so you MUST keep yourself and your personal conflicts SEPARATE from your character. It’s also really important and healthy to take a step back and, out of game, check in with your fellow players and DM to make sure everyone is feeling ok and to know that the in-game experiences are not a reflection of real world feelings. Doing so will not ruin the moment, but allow it to become a fond memory.

Emily

All of the “horror” stories we’ve shared today were all brought about by someone bringing their out of game issues into the game. Bad experiences do happen in D&D, but ultimately, the good experiences outweigh the bad. Dungeons & Dragons is a wonderful story building game that can bring you and your friends closer together. It’s fun, creative, and a way to bond with your friends.

Sierra

You can read more about roleplaying in the D&D 5e Player's Handbook on page 185.

Emily

Thank you so much for joining us today. Put in the comments below the D&D questions you want answered!

Sierra

And we’ll see you next time.

Emily

Hey y’all! I’m Emily.

Sierra

And I’m Sierra. Today we’re going to share our tips on How to build a character sheet.

Emily

All the content we’ll be discussing today will be from the official Dungeons and Dragons Player’s Handbook. Now we’re going to be flipping back and forth through the pages frequently, so be careful not to get whiplash.

Sierra

Let's start creating by giving our character a name, she’ll be Nuri Tamaron. We’re going to make Nuri an elf, with a subrace of high-elf which will give additional abilities. For a synopsis of each fantasy race you can play, check out our other video on that!

Emily

Next we decide our class. For Nuri, she’ll be a wizard. To begin, she’ll be at the introductory level: level 1. As you continue to play the game, you’ll gain experience points from your Dungeon Master which will increase your levels.

Sierra

In D&D there are 6 main ability scores your character will rely on. These are STR, DEX, CON, INT, WIS, and CHA. You use the numbers associated with the ability scores, which are called ability score modifiers, to accomplish actions and attacks.

Emily

There are 3 ways to get the ability score modifiers. The first way is by using the general starter numbers written in the book. Secondly, you can use the point buy system in which you receive 27 points that you can spend “purchasing” the ability score numbers.

Sierra

The third way, the one we’ll be doing, is where you roll 4d6, remove the lowest number, and then add the remaining three rolls together to get one ability score. You will do this 6 times in total to get all your scores.

Emily

Since Nuri is a high-elf she gets to add an additional 2 points to her DEX and 1 point to her INT. These are listed in the race description. From these base numbers, you can calculate the modifier number as shown in this chart.

Sierra

Because Nuri’s class is a wizard we’ll want her highest ability scores to be in her INT and CON as those will best aid her in her class. To see which abilities are best for your class they will be listed under the “quick build” in the chosen class section.

Emily

Her fantasy race as a High-Elf also gives her additional features and traits. Her speed is 30ft and she gains darkvision, which allows Nuri to see in the dark. She also has fey ancestry which prevents her from being put to sleep magically and a Trance feature which lets her only need to sleep for 4 hours instead of the normal 8.

Sierra

As a level 1 wizard, Nuri gets two additional features which are spellcasting and arcane recovery which means she can do a class-specific magic and regain some of her spells faster. You earn additional features as you level up.

Emily

Health, hit points, or HP, can be calculated through your class as well. For Nuri the level 1 Wizard, her HP is 6 + her CON modifier. Her hit dice are found in the class description as well. You can use hit dice to recover HP after a short rest in the game. For each level, she will gain 1d6 hit dice. So at level 5, she’ll have 5d6. Right now though, she only has 1d6.

Sierra

Next we’ll choose Nuri’s background which gives more abilities and flavor to your character. It’s important to note that a backstory and a background are two different things. A background is the general experience and origin of your character while a backstory is the specifics of your story that you build with your DM.  Nuri is going to have the background of a sage.

Emily

A Sage is a wizard on steroids. They study, and study, and study some more.

Sierra

Cause she’s a nerd.

Emily

Also good to note- you’ll want to pick an alignment for your character. An alignment broadly describes moral and personal attitudes. There are 2 parts, one identifies morality (good, neutral, evil) and the other is your attitude towards society and order (lawful, neutral, chaotic). Here’s a chart that can help show what each alignment entails. For Nuri, she’ll be LG.

Sierra

Now going down to the proficiencies and languages box- from Nuri being an elf she can speak common and elvish. And as a sage she can speak two more languages so we picked dwarvish and orc. As a wizard she’s proficient in a few weapons but her subrace gives her the “Elf Weapon Training” which gives her proficiency in a few more.

Emily

Her class and background also offer additional benefits in the skills box. Here we fill in the bubble to indicate what she’s proficient in. At level 1 she has a proficiency bonus of +2, so any of those filled-in skills get the +2 added to the ability score modifier already associated with it. For example, her history will use her INT modifier, and because she’s proficient in the history skill, we add the +2 bonus to the final number.

Sierra

Every character has a passive perception, what they might notice or see on a regular basis. This number is 10 + the wisdom modifier, but because Nuri has Keen Senses as an elf, she gets to add her proficiency bonus of +2. As a wizard Nuri gets to cast spells using her INT. The difficulty for an enemy succeeding against her spells, also called a “spell save DC” is 8 + her spell casting ability + her proficiency bonus. Lastly, the spell attack, her bonus to hitting people with magic, is her INT modifier + proficiency bonus.

Emily

Her class shows the amount of spells and spell slots she has at every respective level. At 1st level, she has 3 cantrips and 2 1st level spell slots. A Cantrip is a spell you can cast any number of times. A spell slot denotes how many times you can cast a spell at each spell level. Don’t worry too much about spellcasting for now though. We’ll cover that in a later episode.

Sierra

Your class and background give you lots of equipment such as gold, armor, weapons and trinkets.

Emily

Your Armor Class is determined mostly by your armor type and is displayed in this chart. Since Nuri’s class doesn’t provide her with any armor, her AC is 10 +her DEX modifier.

Sierra

In the attacks and spellcasting box, you put your main weapon of choice, the bonus to hit with it, and the damage it rolls. For Nuri's weapon, a dagger, her attack bonus will be her Dex modifier added with her proficiency bonus.

Emily

And that’s it! You’re ready to play with a brand new character. Hopefully this didn’t give you too bad of whiplash, but feel free to go back through the video and pause us when you need to process.

Sierra

And don't be too surprised if you get addicted to making new characters, it happens to everyone eventually.

Emily

Thank you so much for joining us today. Put in the comments below the D&D questions you want answered!

Sierra

And we’ll see you next time.

Emily

Hey y’all! I’m Emily.

Sierra

And I’m Sierra. Today we’re going to share our combat tips on what you can do on your turn.

Emily

Every battle in Dungeons and Dragons is made up of multiple rounds. Each round consists of everyone taking a single turn. 

Sierra

You can do three things on your turn. Take an action, a bonus action, and/or move. An action is the main thing you do on your turn while a bonus action is something smaller that you can do if the ability, spell, or attack lists it as a bonus action. Each square, or hex, on the map is 5ft. If your character has 30ft of movement they can move 6 squares.

Emily

There are several options of possible actions you can take. To start, you can take the attack action in which you can strike your enemy. Determining whether you hit or not, requires you to roll 1d20 and add your attack modifier to the roll. To calculate your attack modifier most weapons are your STR modifier. If the weapon is listed as a finesse weapon, then you use your DEX modifier instead of your STR. If you are proficient in the weapons you’re using, then you can add your proficiency bonus to the attack modifier.

Sierra

You hit your target if you equal or succeed their Armor Class, also called the AC. then comes everyone's favorite part, rolling the damage you do! Each weapon will have listed what dice you roll for damage and how many, such as a 1d8. You also have a damage bonus you add to your roll, this is just the ability modifier number associated with your STR or DEX depending on whether you're using a finesse weapon or not. 

Emily

The next option of action you can take is the “Cast a Spell” action. This means you may pick a spell from your spell list that has the casting time set as 1 action, and cast it. These spells have a wide variety of effects and conditions and can change the battle in many ways.

Sierra

Then you have the three D’s- Dash, Disengage and Dodge. The Dash action allows you to double your movement for that turn. Disengage allows you to move away from an enemy without provoking an opportunity attack from them. If you choose to do the dodge action you are preparing yourself for future attacks until your next turn, this means when enemies try to hit you they roll with disadvantage.

Emily

The Help action is really beneficial for the entire party. You can choose to spend your action helping another character in some way, and that in turn gives them advantage to roll on their turn, to accomplish that task. If you’re within 5ft of a creature that’s being attacked, you can use the help action to give someone else advantage to attack that creature as well.

Sierra

If you want to get the drop on your foes, or stay out of sight of the villain, hide is an action you can take. This allows you to roll for stealth and try to vanish out of sight behind something.

Emily

The Ready action is basically an “If-Then” statement. If the goblin steps next to me, then I will attack. You state what your trigger is, the IF statement, and then say what action you will take if it’s triggered: the THEN statement. By using the Ready action you’re basically using your reaction to take your regular action later in the round. We’ll talk more about reactions later on.

Sierra

You can also use your action to search- this means you're taking time in battle to look around using the perception skill to spot something or using the investigation skill to be like Sherlock Holmes and find hidden clues or traps.

Emily

The last action you can take is the “Use an Object” action. This happens when using an object will take your whole action, such as drawing out a potion to use it or interacting with multiple objects.

Sierra

In between each of your turns you get 1 reaction which allows you to do something during another creature's turn. Reactions have very specific triggers that are stated under abilities and spells that are used for reactions. Such as casting a counter spell to stop another mage from completing their spell. If you’re next to an enemy and they move out of your reach you have the option to use your reaction to attack them once while they leave, this is called an “opportunity attack.”

Emily

After taking damage, when your character’s Hit points, or HP, is brought down exactly to 0, this means you are knocked unconscious. If the damage took you down to negative HP, then you are Bleeding Out. Basically you’re dying.

Sierra

When you’re bleeding out, you have to make what’s called Death Saving Throws. You have a few chances for your body to stabilize itself instead of dying. To survive, you need to roll 3 successes on a 1d20 which is a 10 or higher. If you roll a natural 20, you get two successes! If it’s a natural 1, you fail two death saves. You make one death save on each of your turns giving your companions a little time to try and heal you. 

Emily

If you succeed all 3 of your death saves you stabilize and are at 0 hit points. If you fail all three, you die and only a resurrection spell can bring you back.

Sierra

If you die, you get to make a new character- yay! [points to a spot and character creation video pops up] This is the basics to what you can do on your turn in a D&D battle.

Emily

Thank you so much for joining us today. Put in the comments below the D&D questions you want answered!

Sierra

And we’ll see you next time.

Emily

Hey y’all! I’m Emily.

Sierra

And I’m Sierra. Today we’re going to share our tips on how to pick a fantasy race for D&D 5th edition.

Emily

Picking a fantasy race is important as it defines some critical aspects of your character. It shows key features and traits that come from their fantasy race and already brings in a rich culture.

Sierra

When choosing which fantasy race you want to be, keep in mind what kind of character you want to play. For example, if you want to be sneaky and enjoy a second breakfast, a halfling may be your first choice. Or if you want to rage smash your enemies a half-orc may be the one for you. Whatever play-style you're looking for, here’s our synopsis of the main Fantasy races you can be in D&D 5th edition.

Emily

Dwarves are short, stout, and stubborn like nothing else. They value their social standing, crafting skills and while they’re adults at age 50, they can live up to 350 years old. Dwarves are sturdy when it comes to taking a punch, and for this they are good as front-line fighters. There are also 2 subraces for this class, Hill and Mountain Dwarf, which give you additional abilities.

Sierra

Elves are slender and elegant with high expectations for everyone around them but can find good in almost anyone. Since they live over 700 years old and become adults at 100 they have a broader perspective on life than others. Elves are very quick and intelligent so they make a great choice for playing stealthy or ranged attack characters. The subraces for elves are High Elves, Wood Elves, and Dark Elves, also known as Drow.

Emily

Halflings are small and practical. Imagine Bilbo Baggins. They love food, comfy homes, small communities–

Sierra

–and magic rings!

Emily

They mature at age 20 and can live to be about 150. They’re stealthy and dexterous by nature, so they’re very good for that roguish archetype. The additional subraces are Lightfoot and Stout Halflings, and they each provide additional features.

Sierra

Human’s, much like real life, are very diverse in appearance and culture but what the fantasy race of humans all have in common is that they are adaptable and ambitious. Because they live to be less than 100 they have a strong desire to leave their mark on the world. Humans are well rounded and can be a good fit for any play or fighting style.

Emily

Descended from ancient dragons, Dragonborn are akin to their ancestry. They are heavily centered around their clan (or tribe) and on bringing honor to themselves and their clan. They hate to fail and often push themselves to extreme effort before they even consider giving up. They mature fairly quickly, becoming an adult at age 15 and living up to 80 years. Dragonborn are strong and cunning- perfect for a classic fighter build and some magic.

Sierra

Gnomes are creatures of great joy and enthusiasm! They see the glass as half-full and strive to live their 500 year old lives to the fullest. They reach adulthood at 40 and are very intelligent which makes them a great pick for a studious character in magic. Subraces for gnomes are Forest and Rock.

Emily

Caught in between 2 worlds, Half-elves have no land of their own and are driven by their wanderlust. Humans see them as elves, and elves see them as human. They find comfort in others like them. They reach adulthood by age 20 and can live past 180 years. Half-Elves are great for playing as magic casters.

Sierra

Half-Orc’s are half human and half orc which gives them a strong hearty physic. They take great pride in battle scars and relish in the chaos of battle. They mature at 14 and, if they manage to survive their deadly adventures they can grow as old as 75. Half-orcs are fantastic frontline fighters who can take a hit and strike down their foes.

Emily

Infernal by nature, Tieflings are a mixture of humans and demons. They’re looked down on by the other fantasy races due to their heritage, and are seen as scoundrels, pickpockets, and thieves. It’s very difficult to gain the trust of a Tiefling, but if you do they are fiercely loyal. They mature at the same rate as humans and live for just a few years longer. Their skills are good for a character based on performance and magic.

Sierra

These are just the base Fantasy races you can find in the player's handbook but there are several more you can find in official D&D expansion books.

Emily

You’ll find most of the expanded playable races in the Monsters of the Multiverse expansion book. There’s goblins, Aasimir, Goliaths, Tortles, Centaurs, and so many more!

Sierra

Having the option to play so many different fantasy races in Dungeons and Dragons is part of the game's charm. Make sure to read through the abilities of each fantasy race and pick which one suits your playstyle the most.

Emily

And have fun with it!

Sierra

All the information we’ve talked about today, you can find in chapter 2 of the official Player’s Handbook.

Emily

Thank you so much for joining us today. Put in the comments below the D&D questions you want answered!

Sierra

And we’ll see you next time.

Emily

Hey y’all! I’m Emily.

Sierra

And I’m Sierra. Today we’re going to share our tips on how to level up your D&D 5e character sheet.

Emily

We’ll be leveling up Sierra’s wizard Nuri from level 1 to level 2 as our example. To start, you’ll want to level up your hit points. To do this, you’ll go to your class section in the Player’s Handbook. Underneath Class Features will be the Hit Points section. To level up your maximum hit points, you’ll go to the Hit points at higher levels and see the dice shown. Since Nuri is a wizard, her hit point die is 1d6.

Sierra

For each level you’re increasing, you’ll either roll your specified die and add your constitution modifier, or you’ll take the average number (shown in parentheses) and add your constitution modifier to that. Then you’ll add that final number to your total maximum hit points. For Nuri this is 4 + 2 giving her an additional 6 hit points to her existing pool of 8.

Emily

Additionally, your amount of hit dice will increase every time you level up. The amount of hit dice you have, will be equal to your level. In Nuri’s case, since she is now a level 2, she will have 2d6 hit dice. This means that during a short rest she will be able to regain an amount of hit points equal to what she rolls with her hit dice.

Sierra

After you have your new hit points, you will then look at your class chart to see what perks and bonuses you gain! For each class this chart will look different, so we’ll just focus on the wizard one for now. 

Emily

Each time you level up, you’ll follow along the chart to what level you are advancing to, then you will gain everything on that line. Nuri is going from level 1 to 2 here, so we’ll start off with her proficiency bonus, which doesn’t change from the +2 it was before.

Sierra

In the feature section of level 2, Nuri gains the Arcane tradition, which is really just her subclass. Most of the other classes get their subclass at level 3. Nuri will pick the Order of Scribes subclass.

Emily

That is featured in the official D&D 5e sourcebook, Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything.

Sierra

This will give her two additional perks called the Wizardly Quill and the Awakened Spell Book. Each subclass has different perks for their class that will make your character feel unique each time you play.

Emily

For leveling up, each class will have Proficiency Bonus and Features, but the rest of the class charts will be slightly different per class. So be sure to follow the chart and read the explanations that are listed for your class.

Sierra

For Nuri, in the Wizard class chart it shows how many Cantrips she knows and how many spell slots she has for each spell level. At level 2, she doesn't learn any new cantrips but she does gain 1 new spell slot of 1st level, bringing her total to 3 1st level spell slots. A spell slot determines how many spells of a certain level a character is allowed to cast before resting.

Emily

As a Wizard, Nuri then gets to learn some spells as explained in her Spellcasting section. This finishes her level up and Nuri is now officially level 2!

Sierra

Here’s an extra tip. If you start in a D&D 5e game as, for example, a level three, you would start by building your character sheet and then leveling up your character level by level from 1 to 3. Or whatever level your DM says you’ll be playing as before you start your campaign.

Emily

Roughly every four levels you will get an “ability score increase” feature. This allows you to increase 1 ability score by 2, OR increase 2 ability scores by 1. If you don’t want to do either of those, you can instead use the optional feats rule and choose a feat instead. A feat represents a talent or an area of expertise that your character gains.

Sierra

Feats are an optional rule, so be sure to talk to your DM before you reach level 4 to know if feats are a possibility in their game that you can even use.

Emily

Leveling up a character for the first time can be tough, but just read the book as you go, ask a friend, and if you need additional help, message us on Facebook, Instagram, or Discord!

Sierra

Everything we’ve talked about today you can find in the official D&D 5e Player’s Handbook in Chapter 3.

Emily

Thank you so much for joining us today. Put in the comments below the D&D questions you want answered!

Sierra

And we’ll see you next time.

Emily

Hey y’all! I’m Emily.

Sierra

And I’m Sierra. Today we’re going to share our combat tips on how to use your environment in battles.

Emily

Battles in Dungeons and Dragons are some of the best times. So many various effects can happen in the heat of the fight, and major plotlines can be driven forward and backward with eccentric combat. Using your environment can give you advantages and benefits to seemingly impossible fights.

Sierra

Start by simply considering where you are. For instance, are you up high in a tree fort or in a shop with counters you can climb on? In the first campaign I ran as a DM my players had been captured by a goblin camp built high in the trees. They didn't have any of their weapons or equipment to aid them once they broke free from their cages.

Emily

So, the players used their environment to their advantage by kicking the goblins off of the tree house platforms, sending them with a one way ticket to their death. [pumps fist] Chu Chu on that.

Sierra

Finding a way to use the environment doesn't have to be extravagant or complex which is what some people forget. Another great example of simply using your surroundings was in Emily's campaign.

Emily

My players were competing in one-on-one gladiator fights in a goblin-run arena.

Sierra

We like our goblins.

Emily

Sierra’s character was a goblin and the fights were centered around battling for her hand in marriage. So the other players in the party were fighting in the battles to eliminate the ones she didn’t particularly care for.

Sierra

My gladiator companion, Krull, was fighting a particularly strong and mean Goblin who had knocked him to the ground. Krull grabbed some sand and tossed it into the goblin’s face, temporarily blinding him, which gave Krull advantage on his next attack and changed the outcome of the battle.

Emily

Something as simple as sand chucking or dirt kicking can change the course of a fight. Other little ways could be grabbing a branch to jump over an opponent or pushing a boulder off of a cliff towards your target. Get creative with it!

Sierra

Our latest experience was during the final boss battle of one of my campaigns. The party was fighting in a rocky desert with a magical tree in the center that they had to destroy. Two large rock pillars of varying height loomed behind the tree.

Emily

My character, Anyira, had a mechanical bull named Buddy that she had built. So she had Buddy charge into the base of one of the pillars, breaking it. The pillar fell and crushed the tree beneath it. Since the tree still had some life left, she used her firearm to shoot the other rock pillar until it fell and completely destroyed the tree. Ultimately winning the final battle and defeating the boss.

Sierra

Other ways you can use your environment is through weather conditions, objects in your vicinity, and the nature in the area.

Emily

You could tie metal to your enemy and toss them into a lightning storm. Shoot fire at a keg of alcohol causing it to explode. Or jump onto the shoulders of your enemy from up in the trees.

Sierra

Using your environment can make for memorable stories and help your party in various ways. We can promise this will make your combat experience so much better.

Emily

Thank you so much for joining us today. Put in the comments below the D&D questions you want answered!

Sierra

And we’ll see you next time.

Emily

Hey y’all! I’m Emily.

Sierra

And I’m Sierra. Today we’re going to share our tips on unifying your D&D party.

Emily

Honestly, unifying a D&D party is just like bringing together a friend group in real life. There are 3 key elements to being unified, and to being a good friend. 1. Learn about the person. 2. Care about the person. And 3. Serve the person.

Sierra

Number one is to learn about the person. You do this by talking to the other players in-character and asking them about themselves. Actually get to know them like you would any other friend.

Emily

The second point, care about the person, is critical. Take special consideration, feel concern, and attach importance to them. Treat them like they matter, because they do. [pause] It’s super easy, barely an–

Sierra

AH! It’s really easy guys. The second point leads right into the third because when you care for someone you’ll want to serve them.

Emily

When we say service, we don’t mean waiting on them hand and foot. To serve someone means that you perform little small acts of kindness towards them. They can also be big acts of service, but pay attention to what they need emotionally and physically.

Sierra

How can you do this in game? Well, I’m glad you asked. You could give a member of your party a flower, could pay for their room at an inn, you could compliment them on how they killed a monster, or any number of countless things. Even just having your character sit with them when they are sad without saying anything, is an act of service. It shows that you’re willing to be there for them in tough times.

Emily

Now, even if you just try to do 1 of these 3 steps, the other 2 will naturally follow. For example, when you learn about someone and really listen to them, you’ll start to care for and want to serve them. Don’t worry, it’ll come easier as you do it.

Sierra

Do these 3 steps in your own way. If you’re an edgy rouge, a bubbly druid, or a vicious barbarian there is always a way for your character to show they care about the other party members through your actions and words.

 Emily

Unifying the party is about putting others' needs before your own. Basically being selfless. 

Sierra

Even if your character, or someone else's, is selfish- unity in the party can still be reached if that character is doing these 3 steps. Learning, caring, and serving the other party members.

Emily

We see this demonstrated really well in the popular D&D stream group, Critical Role, during their first campaign. One of the characters, Scanlan the Bard, comes off a bit more selfish in his goals and aspirations. But- their adventuring group is still unified and like a family, because Scanlan learns about the party members, cares about them, and serves them in his own unique way.

Sierra

Even if you’re the only one in your party doing these 3 steps, it will still unify the party. For instance I had a Bard character who followed these steps and got along with each party member. The other characters didn't work with each other well but because they all liked the Bard, the whole group stuck together and overcame their differences. Eventually the party became like family.

Emily

It just took a little longer because only one person was following those 3 main steps.

Sierra

Learning, caring, and serving someone to unite a friend group applies to real life as well as in your Dungeons & Dragons campaign. This holiday season we want to extend an extra invitation to you to try one of these three steps with the people in your life.

Emily

Thank you so much for joining us today. Put in the comments below the D&D questions you want answered!

Sierra

And we’ll see you next time.

Emily

Hey y’all! I’m Emily.

Sierra

And I’m Sierra. In light of the halloween season, today we’re going to share our tips on character creation, Spooky vs Spoofy.

Emily

First off, what is spoofy? A spoofy character is a joke. Usually based off of some popular TV show or movie, these characters are defined by the joke that created them.

Sierra

Though spoofy characters are fun to play and hilarious to come up with, there are times for, and not for them. A one shot is the perfect time to play a spoofy character and they generally should be avoided in a campaign.  

Emily

Recently I DM’d a one-shot in which one of my players created a tortle monk named Moogway. Moogway ran a guild called the Dragon Warriors in his mother’s basement. Due to him not doing his chores, he was kicked out and was now adventuring to earn some cash to build a new temple. Now, this was a spoofy character because Moogway was defined by the joke of the beloved Master Oogway from Kung Fu Panda. We all had a good laugh and the One-shot was a lot of fun with Moogway.

Sierra

Moogway was great for a one-shot but if this character was used in a campaign the group would quickly get tired of the joke and come to dislike Moogway. Like all jokes, if they are told too many times in a row it gets old REALLY fast. If your heart is set on playing a spoofy character for a campaign you’ll want to break them from being defined by the joke.

Emily

To do that, you’ll want to develop a rich backstory with real desires, fears, and flaws to define your character. Not the joke. You can check out how to create a great backstory and detailed character in our video linked above.

Sierra

For a Halloween one shot or campaign you may be wanting to play a spooky character. An easy way to start could be by picking a monster fantasy race, such as an orc with human skulls dangling from their waist who wears a blood-stained butcher's bib. Or a goblin who pretends to be a lost child to lure their prey in.

Emily

You could also play as a Hollow One from the official Explorer’s Guide to Wildamount expansion book. A Hollow One can be any race or class, but pretty much you’re undead. Your character was brought back to life by necromancy with their sense of self, but no soul.

Sierra

To top it off, give them an interesting quirk or voice. It could be someone who curls their hands into claws while they talk, someone who speaks in a wispy voice of someone dead, or jerks their head occasionally while talking Falteringly.

Emily

The ultimate crazy combo for your D&D Halloween One-shot would be to make a spooky spoofy character. A character based on classic halloween icons that are both scary, and a joke.

Sierra

It could be a hollow one whose parents grafted different limbs to their body. Pretty much Frankenstien. Maybe you want to be a rogue gnome with a knife fedish named chucky. I think you see where my joke is with this one..

Emily

Or if you’re into the dramatics, you could be Jacob Grey, a werewolf who’s caught in a love triangle with a mortal. She’s in love with your archenemy, Edterd.

Sierra

Whether you want to be a spoofy or spooky character we hope these tips help you with your next game session.

Emily

Thank you so much for joining us today. Put in the comments below the D&D questions you want answered!

Sierra

And we’ll see you next time.

Emily

Hey y’all! I’m Emily.

Sierra

And I’m Sierra. Today we’re going to share our tips on how to write a backstory for your D&D character.

Emily

To start off, a backstory is different from your background. A background is your character’s general experience and origin whereas a backstory is the specifics of your character’s life leading up to the start of the game. We talk more about backgrounds in our Character Creation video, so check that out for more info.

Sierra

One of my favorite backstory tools to use is the “this is your life” charts from Xanathars Guide to Everything on page 61. If you have no idea what to do for your backstory, or just want to generate something random, use these charts! For today though we’ll be focusing on our specific tips of how to build a rich backstory for your character to make the game more exciting.

Emily

Our first tip is to work with your Dungeon Master. The DM knows what the world is going to be like and what the general plot will be. As you discuss your ideas with the DM, you’ll be able to be more fully immersed in the plotline of your game.

Sierra

The DM is not your enemy, they want your story to be tied to the plot and filled with mysteries you can discover. So please, get your backstory approved with your DM as there may be things they suggest to change, add, or remove so that you will have the best involvement in the plot. And if your DM says no to something, accept the no answer, the reason behind the “no” could be because of a plot or game dynamic.

Emily

Next, whatever background you picked from the Player’s Handbook will have given you the option for choosing a personality trait, ideal, bond, and flaw. These are great resources for building how your character acts, their morals, and basic moments in your past that shaped them.

Sierra

Think about the important relationships that have built your character into who they are today. Such as parents, siblings, their significant other, and/or their life rival.

Emily

A character is also shaped by their desires and fears. What is it that they want most of all? And what fear is keeping them from attaining that?

Sierra

Additionally you’ll need an open-ended problem. This means having an outward problem that your character doesn't know everything about and doesn't have the solution for right now.

Emily

Along those lines is having a goal associated with your open-ended problem. It’s answering the question of: Why is my character out adventuring?

Sierra

A bad example of a problem and goal would be that of a character who’s been falsely accused of a murder and was banished from their village. Their life solution, go out doing very dangerous adventures that might kill them. This doesn't make sense. It’s like going to hunt down the mafia since you can't go home anymore. Why? Just why?

Emily

Trust me, we’ve seen backstories written this way.

Sierra

An improvement on this idea would be to have the same problem. You’re falsely accused of a murder and have been banished from your village. The goal changes to trying to find the person responsible for the murder and prove your innocence. What makes this open-ended and flexible is that you don’t know who the murderer is but you have a clue pointing to the mafia.

Emily

Now put all of these tips together to create a rich backstory for your character. One example of a full backstory is from a character I played in Sierra’s campaign several years ago.

Sierra

Emily’s character was a human cleric named Ayla Zarodus.

Emily

Ayla’s background was an Acolyte, and so she had a Personality trait of being optimistic and an ideal of charity- always giving to others. She did this by running an orphanage with her husband. Her bond was a connection to a priest who had taken her in after her parents died and her flaw was that she would obsess over her goals.

Sierra

Already she had relationships I could bring into the plot and exploit such as a husband, a mentor, since her parents were dead, and a younger sister she took care of alongside with the other orphaned kids.

Emily

So, I worked with my DM to better fit her into the story. Sierra told me that kids were going missing around the world and that all of the kids from Ayla’s orphanage, including her sister, were kidnapped. And her husband that had left to go find them hadn’t been heard from in over a month.

Sierra

Her open ended problem- her “children” were gone, she didn't know who had taken them, or where, and her husband had vanished. Her goal was to go out and find them and bring them back home. This was lots of juicy stuff for me to work with.

Emily

My character also had a strong desire that fueled her actions. Her ultimate dream was to have a family and to live happily with them. The problem played right into Ayla’s fear of losing her family forever, and never having that desire fulfilled.

Sierra

This was a pretty straightforward backstory I could incorporate into my plot to help create the best story for Emily to experience with the other players. 

Emily

This also helped me to understand the reasons behind why my character was out adventuring. I was able to enjoy roleplaying an amazing character and I really felt immersed in the world, story, and other characters while played.

Sierra

Your backstory can be as simple or complex as you like with these simple tips. So have fun creating your backstory with your DM! 

Emily

Thank you so much for joining us today. Put in the comments below the D&D questions you want answered!

Sierra

And we’ll see you next time.

Emily

Hey y’all! I’m Emily.

Sierra

And I’m Sierra. Today we’re going to share our tips on how to pick a D&D class.

Emily

A class defines what your character can do. It’s more than a profession, it’s their calling.

Sierra

The class you play as will contribute greatly to your play style, whether that’s up front fighting or playing a supporting magic class. Each class will rely on different abilities such as strength or intelligence which are also affected by the fantasy race you pick. Here are the core classes you can play from the Player's Handbook.

Emily

Barbarians are the reckless, up-front fighters. They punch first and ask questions later. They rely heavily on their instincts and “trust their gut” in all decisions. One key aspect is barbarian rage. Where they’re fueled by the rush of battle and deal tons of damage.

Sierra

My personal favorite class is the bard. They’re charismatic performers who weave music and magic together to cast spells to aid the people around them. Through their skills in performing they are able to distract, trick, and even manipulate others to help the party of adventurers.

Emily

Clerics are what most players deem as the healers of the party. Their magic comes from the Gods they worship. They’re also good fighters in a pinch, but generally they stick to spellcasting.

Sierra

Druid’s are one with nature- they have a special connection to plants, animals, and elements that fuel their spells of destruction or help. This class relies on the ability of wisdom. A unique part of druids is they are able to turn into animals they have seen before and jump into the fray with razor sharp claws or trampling hooves.

Emily

The Fighter class is, well, they’re really good at fighting. They rely heavily on their skills and techniques to become experts at pretty much any weapon they wield.

Sierra

Monk’s are martial art fighters that Punch, punch, punch, punch everything into a bloody heap on the ground. Monk’s use Ki points to do special attacks and, you guessed it, punch more things. Monks need to be light on their feet and also wise. This class is very fun to play if you enjoy darting through battles and smacking monsters in the face.

Emily

Paladins are holy warriors. While good at both defense & offense, they’re still able to cast some spells alongside their fighting emphasis. They are bound to an oath they swear by, and that oath is what gives them their magic abilities.

Sierra

When I hear the class “Ranger” my mind immediately goes to the elf with gorgeous hair- Legolas. Generally Rangers are archers, great hunters, trackers, and survivalists. They move swiftly through the woods and can attack enemies that are out of reach for the other classes.

Emily

Known for their cunning and stealth, Rogues are great for a “silent-but-deadly” build. They’re good for hiding in the shadows and striking with their “sneak attack'' ability which deals an insane amount of damage.

Sierra

Sorcerers don't have to work for anything, they’re literally born with magic. It can be wild and unpredictable, come from ancient dragons, or be from somewhere else. They also have meta magic which gives them additional magic abilities.

Emily

Warlocks are bound by the pact they make with their Patron. Patrons are extremely powerful beings that are not Gods. They make pacts with mortals to create warlocks who will do their bidding. While Warlocks can’t cast many spells, the spells they can cast are very powerful.

Sierra

Wizard’s are the nerds of the fantasy world-

Emily

Hey! Offense Taken.

Sierra

Through Study and obsessing over books they learn the secrets of magic and are able to become powerful mages that rain fire from the sky. They are also VERY squishy, which means they have low health and armor, and should be kept at a safe distance from enemies.

Emily

And with every individual class there are Sub-classes. These are just additional paths and abilities you can pick for more customization to your playstyle.

Sierra

There are more classes and subclasses in the official D&D expansion books for you to pick from.

Emily

All in all, be what you want to be! The plethora of classes allows you to select and model a playstyle to your liking. Enjoy the opportunity to try something new!

Sierra

All the information we’ve talked about today, you can find in chapter 3 of the official Player’s Handbook.

Emily

Thank you so much for joining us today. Put in the comments below the D&D questions you want answered!

Sierra

And we’ll see you next time.