Tag Archives: play style

Why Dungeons & Dragons players stopped exploring megadungeons

Posted on November 11, 2015 by David Hartlage

In my last post I wrote about how Dungeons & Dragons creators Dave Arneson and Gary Gygax built their campaigns around huge dungeons that grew and changed. These megadungeons enabled Dave and Gary to run campaigns for dozens of players. … Continue reading →

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How to forge the most epic multi-table role-playing event ever

Posted on October 13, 2015 by David Hartlage

Third-edition Dungeons & Dragons reached stores in 2000. Its popularity fueled a number of “living” campaigns similar to today’s Adventurers League and Pathfinder Society. One such campaign, Living Arcanis hosted an event called The Battle of Semar at the Winter … Continue reading →

Posted in Advice | Tagged , , , , , | 19 Comments

Speed factor, weapon armor class adjustments, and skill challenges

Posted on December 6, 2012 by David Hartlage

(Part 3 of a series, which begins with Evolution of the skill challenge.) The first edition of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons included lots of rules that no one uses: weapon speed factor, weapon armor class adjustments. A little of that tradition lived … Continue reading →

Posted in D&D fourth edition, Role-playing game design | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Immersive vs. Gamey in D&D Next, the score is 1-1

Posted on September 21, 2012 by David Hartlage

When I first started playing Dungeons & Dragons, people would tell me that the game interested them, but that felt intimidated by all the rules. No problem, I explained, you can play without knowing any of the rules. You play … Continue reading →

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