DM David Hartlage
@dmdavid.com
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D&D design, advice, rules, and inspiration from your friend DM David. He/Him dmdavid.com
I love books of random tables, but few reach the heights of The Creative Game Masters Guide to Extraordinary Locations by Duncan Rhodes. This book keeps adding ways to prove invaluable, including dispensing advice, inspiration, and adventure seeds. Itās rocket fuel for your imagination.
about 1 hour ago
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I picked up Sign of the Labrys (1963) because it features a megadungeon-like underground that Gary cited as an inspiration. Also, itās post apocalyptic like Gamma World.
1 day ago
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TTRPGs have avoided higher tariffs on games due to an exemption for printed, hardbound books. Reminds me of 2003 case where a judge ruled the X-Men non-human, gaining their action figures the reduced tariffs for toys rather than dolls. So on the nose for the X-Men's themes.
4 days ago
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I'm working on a level-12 D&D adventure and facing the usual challenge of finding enough high-level monsters that are (a) plausibly found in a group and (b) reasonably simple to run as a group. Once again, the answer is fiends.
#FeelingDevilish
5 days ago
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Wow! This interactive map makes a great way to explore the Realms.
add a skeleton here at some point
6 days ago
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New post: How a Roleplaying Game like D&D Could Make Rounds Play Better ⢠Making retreat practical like in 1974 ⢠"Join me, and together, we can rule the galaxy" ⢠6 seconds of simultaneous effects, just like AD&D
dmdavid.com/tag/rpg-desi...
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RPG Design: How a Roleplaying Game like D&D Could Make Rounds Play Better
Since D&D dropped the declaration phase in favor of cyclic initiative, it has let one round blur into the next without any phases that trigger between rounds. Still, each round represents a shoā¦
https://dmdavid.com/tag/rpg-design-how-a-roleplaying-game-like-dd-could-make-rounds-play-better/
24 days ago
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My Winter Fantasy judging schedule Feb 07 - Saturday (9AM - 1PM) Grim Hollow #7 - Blood & Poison Feb 07 - Saturday (2PM - 6PM) Grim Hollow #5 - Requiem for the Living Feb 08 - Sunday (9AM - 1PM) Grim Hollow #6 - Worse than the Disease Feb 08 - Sunday (1PM - 5PM) Grim Hollow #7 - Blood & Poison
26 days ago
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reposted by
DM David Hartlage
MechTexas
about 1 month ago
If you are curious about running Draw Steel and are hesitant to get in the system, I recommend this discussion between
@d20play.bsky.social
and
@dmdavid.com
Tom has put a lot of time and effort into the system and has some valuable insight into running Draw Steel.
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d20play Live 90 Learning to Run Draw Steel
YouTube video by d20play
https://www.youtube.com/live/T_QGRaVQz8E?si=TIIT3jPIhTuYzkQ_
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Grammar mavens: Should I be writing, "The fifth-edition designers opted to skip all that rules baggage," with or without the hyphen?
about 1 month ago
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New post: Making the most of cyclic turn order in games Like D&D and Pathfinder.
dmdavid.com/tag/making-t...
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Making the Most of Cyclic Turn Order in Games Like D&D and Pathfinder
My post Turns and Turn Order Are the Worst, so Why Do Roleplaying Games Make Us Spend So Much Time Deliberating Them? compared the two most common methods for setting turn order, player-driven and ā¦
https://dmdavid.com/tag/making-the-most-of-cyclic-turn-order-in-games-like-dd-and-pathfinder/
about 1 month ago
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reposted by
DM David Hartlage
Raging Owlbear
about 1 month ago
My group started our
#Dragonbane
mini-campaign last week. Here are some thoughts and highlights (very mild spoilers).
#ttrpg
#dnd
add a skeleton here at some point
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My new discovery in the AD&D DMG: Gary explains hp and poison saves. "Damage is not actually sustainedāat least in proportion to the number of hit points marked off in most cases. The so called damage is the expenditure of favor from deities, luck, skill, and perhaps a scratch." (1/3)
about 1 month ago
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reposted by
DM David Hartlage
Jonathan Tweet
about 1 month ago
Turns out that Steve Perrin is behind the initiative rules in Holmes Basic and thus cyclic initiative in 3E
add a skeleton here at some point
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reposted by
DM David Hartlage
Jonathan Tweet
about 1 month ago
This classic RuneQuest/Glorantha supplement changed the way I design RPGs. The "cult initiate" concept in RQ became the "wizards' houses" of Ars Magica, then Vampire's clans, then all the factions in the '90s-era RPGs. Hard to part with. Lots of old stuff on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
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reposted by
DM David Hartlage
Andrew B.
about 1 month ago
Interesting read as always from David! I keep coming back to the fact that two of
#dnd
5e's three pillars of play (exploration and social interaction) use "player-driven" turn order and everyone's fine with it, yet when a game tries it for combat, some folks just totally lose their s***.
add a skeleton here at some point
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New post: Making the best of roleplaying games like Draw Steel and Daggerheart with player-driven turn orders
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Making the Best of Roleplaying Games Like Draw Steel and Daggerheart With Player-Driven Turn Orders
The post Turns and Turn Order Are the Worst, so Why Do Roleplaying Games Make Us Spend So Much Time Deliberating Them? compared the two most common methods for setting turn order, player-driven andā¦
https://dmdavid.com/tag/making-the-best-of-roleplaying-games-like-draw-steel-and-daggerheart-with-player-driven-turn-orders/
about 1 month ago
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If you have a wand of magic missiles with 7 charges and a DM who lets you pass it from character to character, then you can fire 21 missiles in a round. If you just fire once with all charges, then you only get 9. Work for hirelings? (Check out my latest post on the awkward necessity of turns.)
about 1 month ago
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Recently, I saw a post name a cinematic martial arts RPG with a dialogue phase that gave combatants time to threaten, banter, and so on. Now I canāt find the post or remember the name of the game. Can anyone help me out?
about 1 month ago
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reposted by
DM David Hartlage
d20play
about 2 months ago
Talking about initiative in TTRPGs with
@dmdavid.com
tomorrow night. What is the best way?
youtube.com/live/idJP7L6...
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d20play Live 88 ROLL FOR INITIATIVE What is the Best Way
There are as many ways to do initiative as there are TTRPGs. What is the best way? The BEST D&D Quick Reference: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/493865/2024-DD-Quick-Reference-Sheets?affiliate_id=46...
https://youtube.com/live/idJP7L6fZv8?feature=share
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New post: Turns and Turn Order Are the Worst, so Why Do Roleplaying Games Make Us Spend So Much Time Deliberating Them?
dmdavid.com/tag/turns-an...
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Turns and Turn Order Are the Worst, so Why Do Roleplaying Games Make Us Spend So Much Time Deliberating Them?
What rates as the most exciting phrase spoken in a Dungeons & Dragons game? āRoll for initiative.ā What rates as the most unwelcome task? After those three words, the minutes of bookkeeping reqā¦
https://dmdavid.com/tag/turns-and-turn-order-are-the-worst-so-why-do-games-make-us-spend-so-much-time-deliberating-them/
about 2 months ago
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When a character attempts an action and then rolls the dice, does the roll tell how well the character performs and nothing more, or can the roll reveal something about the world? Monte Cook breaks down an essential concept for RPG designers and GMs.
montecook.substack.com/p/roll-the-d...
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Roll the Dice and See
Today weāre going to talk about dice.
https://montecook.substack.com/p/roll-the-dice-and-see?utm_medium=email&triggerShare=true
about 2 months ago
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(Still contemplating turn orders in TTRPGs.) I've played some Savage Worlds and fail to get the appeal of random way it sets turn order: Deal standard playing cards and take turns by card rank. Repeat each round. Seems like a lot of ceremony just for maximum randomness. What's the appeal?
about 2 months ago
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Even if I didn't like Draw Steel, I would want to run it at the table just to build and use this incredible initiative tracking system
@alphastream.bsky.social
invented.
alphastream.org/index.php/20...
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My New Initiative Tracking System for the Draw Steel RPG
I get crafty and find an excellent way to track initiative in Draw Steel. I share how I made it, so you can too!
https://alphastream.org/index.php/2025/11/20/my-new-initiative-tracking-system-for-draw-steel/
about 2 months ago
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Games with player-driven turn orders like Draw Steel and Daggerheart have had me thinking. I paged to Combat Sequence in 13th Age 2E. āJonathan introduced cyclic initiative to F20 gaming 25 years ago and we are never going back.ā Opinionated. I like it.
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How D&D Got an Initiative System Rooted in California House Rules
Some groups playing first-edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons might have run initiative by the book, but with the incomprehensible rules text, no one knew for sure. Besides, the full rules provā¦
https://dmdavid.com/tag/every-version-of-dd-has-initiative-but-no-rule-changed-as-much/
about 2 months ago
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Look what arrived on my doorstep.
about 2 months ago
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People new to TTRPGs, especially kids, get excited by a game where they can try anything and watch the consequences. Forget archery contests and carnival games for intro adventures; everyone's played games with rolls and outcomes. I want scenes with choices and consequences.
about 2 months ago
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In games with player-driven turn orders like Daggerheart and Draw Steel, what's your best suggestion for keeping play brisk?
youtu.be/vy5LlRbKFFM
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After you!
YouTube video by Kameon Quillen
https://youtu.be/vy5LlRbKFFM?si=7vzWbIy8J-c21SdY
2 months ago
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Iām a huge fan of this technique for introducing characters during an adventureās imagined opening credits. Very fun and memorable! Players whoāve never seen the A-Team often know the Borderlands games that use the same style.
youtu.be/oYZmpMIwZss
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My Go-To Technique for RPG Character Intros!
YouTube video by Alphastream
https://youtu.be/oYZmpMIwZss?si=ShQZx2RQOboXcTYJ
2 months ago
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In an real fight, everyone acts at the same time. Burning Wheel reflects simultaneous activity by resolving every action before applying all results at once. Results include wounded, killed, unbalanced, or knocked prone. This strikes me as brilliant and perhaps too different from what I'm used to.
2 months ago
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What the D&D 2024 Alert feat feels like to me. Black Bart goes for his gun, his gang raises weapons, and then the heroes take a time out to discuss who should have the quickest draw today.
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2 months ago
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On last night's d20Play Live stream,
@d20play.bsky.social
and I perused some randomly selected Forgotten Realms: Adventures in Faerƻn. "What Wakes Below" stood out with the strong ideas and situations a DM needs to build 500 words into a full session. The wonderful map could be a campaign!
2 months ago
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Adventures in Faerƻn takes a different slant on the Dalelands than the old sources I researched for my last campaign. But the new-to-me angle gives me exciting ideas.
2 months ago
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When I set my last D&D campaign in Daggerdale, I read lots of old Dalelands books. Still, Adventures in FaerĆ»n lures me back to the Dales. Myth Drannor as a megadungeon analog? Yes, please. The placeās disparate locales avoid the risk of monotony and the nearby Dales offer other, bigger stories.
2 months ago
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Just about D&D 2024 game includes a PC with the Alert feat, which delays the start of each fight with a minute of talk about who wants to swap. I'm thinking about the play value of discussing who goes next. So much of that in Draw Steel and Daggerheart. Do the benefits merit the game time?
3 months ago
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My Halloween night spectacle.
#TheMusicalBox
3 months ago
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I've touted Affinity Publisher as outstanding alternative to InDesign, available at a modest, 1-time price. Today Affinity combined Publisher with their illustrator and photo editing apps and made it all free. The catch? Affinity owner Canva hopes you'll subscribe to an AI add-on.
3 months ago
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I like how well Forgotten Realms: Heroes of FaerĆ»n realizes the potential of D&D 2024ās weightier backgrounds and origin feats. The bookās setting-specific additions bring the flavor of the Realms.
3 months ago
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When a character does something noteworthy, give a short, vivid description of the eventāor invite the player to describe it. Focus on describing the big spells, stunts, transformations, setbacks, and feats of valor.
3 months ago
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Draw steel only allows respites in places where heroes are "unlikely to get stabbed in their sleep." The new Heroes of the Borderlands requires PCs to return to the keep for long rests. This sort of limit adds interesting choices, avoids 5-minute days, and I want it for D&D's core.
3 months ago
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When 4E let D&D characters split their movement around an attack, combatants gained the ability to move into view, shoot, and then move back out of view. To counteract, the game needed readied actions. "When an enemy moves into view, I shoot."
3 months ago
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Erol Otus drew art for Dave Hargrave's Arduin Grimoire (1977). Later on TSR staff, Erol drew the regional map for White Plume Mountain with the caption, "Beyond to the lair of Dragotha, the undead dragon, where fabulous riches and hideous death await." An electrifying bit of flavor!"
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3 months ago
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Iām playing at a table and feeling the sympathetic restlessness of watching our DM and knowing she must be running way long. Good news is she knows it and plans adjustments
3 months ago
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I had a blast playing
@jamesintrocaso.bsky.social
demo of any early version MCDMās grittier dungeon crawl RPG, CROWS. It matches the strong mechanical foundation of Draw Steel with a lightweight, tense dungeon survival style. But Iām sorry my spell misfire killed
@shawnmerwin.bsky.social
ās PC.
3 months ago
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Fun and informative! Played
@alphastream.bsky.social
ās trap gauntlet interspersed with discussion of trap design. Key quote: āYou just learned something important,ā but not key for the reasons you might think.
3 months ago
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At GameHole con, playing Grim Hollow. The party learns of an NPC named Darrin. Hours of play later, we find him possibly under some enchantment. I get to organically ask, āDoes Darrin seem bewitched?ā Do I credit (blame?) DM
@joeraso.bsky.social
or author
@shawnmerwin.bsky.social
for this delight?
3 months ago
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Guess where I am.
3 months ago
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Some convention DMs can bring A+ production values. If you run something many times over a weekend, the work pays off. From Origins in 2018. Recognize the adventure?
3 months ago
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reposted by
DM David Hartlage
Alessandro Rosa, PhD
3 months ago
I donāt think the neuroscience research supports this. Stress ends up being an inhibitor of creativity, not the other way around⦠think āthe best ideas come in the shower.ā Thomas Edison used to nap in a chair holding a ball bearing. The clatter would rouse him and he claimed to have new solutions.
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20-something years ago, I read Charlie Chaplinās autobiography. The thing I still think about is how he embraced pressure as a source of ideas. āI had to have an idea. I was in an emergency. That is when ideas comeāwhen one is in desperate need.ā
3 months ago
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Here's my Gen Con 2004 Schedule shown in Palm Desktop. I just had to restore a 20-year-old backup using old software CDs, and then install Palm on a virtual machine. Yikes! I'm deep in this rabbit hole.
3 months ago
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