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5e

A collection of 15 posts

A figure with shaggy blonde hair sitting at the water's edge, holding a crystal and peering into the eyes of a blue dragon-like creature whose head is emerging out of the water.

Reflecting on Homebrew Rules for 5E

Reflecting on two years of using a specific set of homebrew/optional rules for 5E.

Awesome Obsidian Community Plugins for D&D

A handful of community plugins can transform your RPG campaign management.

PhD20.com | Ideas and Resources for Tabletop RPGs

Overland Travel Is a Dungeon Crawl

We don't need to overcomplicate overland travel.

PhD20.com | Ideas and Resources for Tabletop RPGs

Running Shorter Sessions

We don't need as much time as we often think to run meaningful RPG sessions.

Improving High Level Play

High level play is a hot-button topic for 5E as well as previous editions of Dungeons & Dragons. Few groups experience high level play. Most complain that the game falls apart at higher levels. Others lament the “lack of support” for high level play. While true, these might not be

Best of 2023

Let’s take a quick look back at the best of PhD20 in 2023. Organizing Obsidian for D&D This series helps game masters simplify and secure their approach to organizing D&D with Obsidian. * Organizing Obsidian for D&D | The Big Picture on Vaults * Organizing Obsidian

A laptop and phone displaying the D&D Beyond interface.

The Dark Side of D&D Beyond

D&D Beyond’s tools are great. But they come with some unintended consequences that impact our creativity and play.

Warrior with an axe standing on drawbridge above a group of soldiers looking up at him.

4 Ways to Improve Initiative in D&D 5E

Crow’s Nest by maxprodanov (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0) “Roll initiative.” Two of the most exciting words in D&D. Almost always followed by two of the least exciting minutes of a game session. Initiative in Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition can put a real damper on the excitement

Make Equipment Interesting in D&D

Equipment used to be a core concept of Dungeons & Dragons. Buy more stuff so you could use it to delve deeper to find greater rewards. Not so much anymore. Yet tables upon tables of choices remain in the Player’s Handbook. You can make equipment interesting again with a

Summoning Spells Suck in 5E

If you’re a Dungeon Master, you’ve probably experienced the effect that summoning spells have on combat. Spoiler: it’s not a good one. We know they suck because the rules have tried to patch them at least twice. But has it worked? Disclaimer: If you’re a player

Gotta Catch 'Em All: Magic Items

I like to look to my favorite books, games, and shows for D&D inspiration. This is a powerful tool for a DM. When looking at Pokémon, the inspiration was obvious: magic items. In the games, you set out to collect Pokémon. You overcome challenges by using the skills

Simple 5E Sub-Systems for DMs in a Hurry

How do we embrace fun, new gaming opportunities in 5E without overly complex sub-systems? By asking three questions. Zipperon Disney asked on Twitter: I think most homebrew alchemy systems for #DnD are overly taxing on the DM and time at the table. Worldbuild magic ingredients, Gather them, keep track of

dungeons, dragons, downtime

Dungeons, Dragons, & Downtime

Downtime activities are a recurring theme in most D&D campaigns. Many 5E source books include rules for downtime activities. But how do you take those rules and run enjoyable downtime? Let’s find out. D&D 5E defines Downtime Activities and rules in many sourcebooks. The Player’

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Flaws in Your D&D Game

Flaws and failure provide unparalleled opportunities for memorable moments in D&D. In this article, we’ll focus on flaws. We’ll look at why players and DMs underutilize them and how to fix that. What are flaws? According to the Basic Rules: “your character’s flaw represents some

Miniatures set up on map

Tools for Enhanced 5E Combat

As a Dungeon Master, we strive for fun and exciting combat encounters. The mechanics of Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition provide us with a nice toolset to help. But it isn’t perfect. Combat can drag, feeling like a chore. Or even worse, it can turn into a slugfest of