Building a village for your Dungeons and Dragons campaign is relatively simple.  The key components of a village (despite what the Dungeon Master’s Guide may have told you) are:

·    A purpose
·    A place
·    A face

Lets start with the purpose.  Why is the village there?  Why do the players care?  Is it just a rest stop on the way to the next adventure?  Does it hold a vital clue to solving some mystery?  Understanding the purpose will tell you not only what elements to include in your village, but also give you some ideas about how to describe it and how much effort you need to put into it.  A watering hole on the way to the big city (because the players just need a place to rest for the night) will require significantly less effort than a collection of undead farmers attempting to hide their nefarious secret from the world.

Once you understand the purpose of the village you need to give the players a place to be and someone to interact with.  These are the place and the face respectively.

The place is simply the stage where most of the action is expected to happen.  This can be a tavern, a farmhouse, a store, or the village square (or any of dozens of other locations).  The whole idea here is that you put some amount of though into at least one location and give the players clues that this is where they need to be and who they need to talk to.  If you are building the village on the fly then understanding the place is vital – not only to keeping your sanity but to directing your players so they don’t get bored or confused.

Finally, the face is the one character that you want them to remember or care about.  This could be the innkeeper or the shadowy figure in the corner.  It is the person that you as a DM will draw attention to and focus the players attention on.

Now, if you are using stock NPC’s to go with your campaign, here is a handy trick that I use.  It is a version of the magician’s force, but it works well.  A force (in case you are wondering) is simply the art of offering a choice without really offering a choice.  The idea is simple.  Have one set of stats – anything that fits the power level of your part.  Then offer two or three physical descriptions to the players of people they encounter in the village.  Now, whoever they choose to talk to or interact with gets those stats.

90% of the time (or more) they will ignore the other characters that you created anyway and there will be no need for them to have stats – not even a name.  It gets confusing to keep track of too many characters, and most players just want to find the important ones.  Make it easy on them (and yourself) by simply having the one they talk to be the important one.  They will never know the difference and you will save yourself a few headaches.

If you are afraid of metagaming, then mix it up a little.  Make them get past a few red herrings first.

Either way, be sure to have fun with it!

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What is a stock NPC?  Put simply it is that guy that shows up in nearly every town, village, bar or other place the players visit often.

The judicious use of stock NPC’s can make many elements of your D&D campaign run much more smoothly, especially if you are running a campaign that involves a lot of city or town travel and is a bit lighter on the dungeons.

The monster manual, handily enough, provides us with a number of stock NPC’s ready for use, i.e. the various “monster” versions of the races in the Player’s Handbook.  These are very useful and should not be overlooked.  If you expect to use a new town or village in the next session it may be a good idea to keep the stat cards around for the humans at the very least, but you may want to consider having a few elves or tieflings as well, depending on your setting.

These statistics are useful for when the party decides to do the totally unexpected such as rob the local merchants of their winter grain storage or recruit the farmer’s daughter into the party.  Having the stats handy (rather than buried somewhere in a book) makes it a lot easier to say “yes” to the crazy ideas.

Combine the stat cards with a name generator and you are set.  If you can find a name generator that does many names at once then just print a list of 20 or 30 names and you are set.

The key to remember when using stock NPC’s is that the players will remember how you play the character rather than where he was found or what her name was.  The stats on the card are there only for reference should anything involving rules come up.  The rest of it is up to how you decide to play that particular character and what sort of feel you want to bring to the session.

Until next time have fun!

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Have you ever had a hard time “getting into charcter?”  You’ve thumbed through the Player’s Handbook for a couple of hours already and have nothing to show for it?  Or worse, you have a character build and optimized, but you just don’t “feel it” when you play that character.

First let’s back away for just a moment.  Remember that role-playing is about making a fantasy, even if it isn’at a medieval fantasy setting.  As a kid did you ever pretend to be superman.  Of course you did (ok, pick the heroe of your choice).  That is probably why you got into RPG’s in the first place, and its probably why you’ve stayed with it.

So start with the fantasy.  Put the rule book away and grab a notebook and a pencil.  Yes, I said pencil.  You’ll want to erase things and make changes as you go.  Now start.  You can start with a name, like Firzna the Belligerant, or a race, or maybe even just a concept like “warrior princess.”

Then brainstorm ideas about the character.  Is it a he or a she?  Tall?  Thin?  Fat?  Blonde? Grey eyes?  Just throw out random thoughts until you get some that you like.  Then think about what motivates the character?  Does she hate troglodytes?  Why?  Was her village rampaged by them or did his father tell him stories about the old days when the trogs used to steal children?

Move onto why the character is adventuring.  Is she out to avenge wrongs or just looking for a good time?  The motives will guide you into more specifics about how he goes about it.  A sneaky thief, for example probably won’t stroll around in full plate, but an experience veteran in the local town militia certainly will try to get the best armor possible.

By now you should have a pretty good idea of what your character is all about.

If you don’t, then try and draw a sketch of your character.  Don’t worry, you’re not going to be sharing it with anyone, just start drawing and see what you come up with.  Notice what you include and what you don’t.  The gear you choose will tell you a lot about what you are going to play.  If you really don’t like to draw, then get online and start looking at some fantasy artwork.  Find a piece of art that matches your concept, or at least gets close and an idea will form in your head.  Then go and get your notebook and start writing.

Now that you know exactly what you want to play, and how, go back to the rule book and find the race/class that matches your concept.  Yes it is possible that you won’t have a completely optimized character, but you will find something that works.  Don’t get caught up in the notion that a class name like wizard means that you have to be a stuffy old bookworm.  “Wizard” really only means a character that has access to the class abilities, skills, and powers of that class.  If your character concept is one of a warlock that uses wizard style spells, then call yourself a warlock (just write wizard) on your character sheet.

Find the powers that best suit your character concept.  Ask your DM if you can rename some of them.  You don’t have to change anything else about them, just call them something else.  Your Magic Missile can become a “Doom Bolt” or similar.  Do the same with skills and feats.  Pick the ones that let the flavor you have already picked shine through.

If you are in the unfortunate place of already having a character, then I suggest you do the same things already outlined, only you may not have all the customization options open anymore.  If this is the case, then either ask your DM what you can retool, or else focus on the aspects of your character you do enjoy.  I find that getting an image of the character is very helpful here.  Most of us have played computer RPG’s where we couldn’t customize things just the way we wanted, but having the graphic in front of me helped a lot to get into the game.  You can use the same trick with a tabletop with either a picture or a mini.

Hope these ideas help, and enjoy your character!

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Ok, I’m presenting some links, and a few general thoughts on each 4^th edition character class. So many others have done so much to get guides and advice on character building together. This is simply a short primer on what each class can do with links to much more extensive advice on optimization and character building, by class.

Warlock Guide

Warlocks have many options, but there are also a lot of decisions to make at first level. All of the eldritch pacts can be useful and effective. This is a choice that comes down to style and preference. If you are worried about survivability, though, remember that you can really maximize your hit points by taking the infernal pact route as your constitution can start at 18 or even 20 quite easily.

If you would rather play a more sneaky or deceitful route, then you can also maximize your charisma to good effect and remain a force on the battlefield. Your choice of skills should support your main ability score choice and also the way you decide to play your character.

Ranger

Rangers can do excellent damage, as well as have awesome mobility. The decision between ranged and melee Ranger is a crucial one you need to make when you create the character. You can’t really do both and still be effective.

Put your ability scores where they will help you hit as often as possible. Rangers can do a ton of damage, but only if they hit, so be sure to maximize your hitting potential. Also, they tend to have lower hit points than other characters, so get them some solid armor as well.

Paladin

A Paladin won’t generally be able to main heal your party. For that you will want to look at the Cleric or Warlord. But they can do some great things for controlling the battlefield, and can have awesome hit points.

They get plate mail to start with, and there isn’t a good reason I can thing of not to go with it. Maximize your defensive capabilities. Don’t worry if you can’t hit as hard as some of the other classes. Focus your ability scores where they will maximize your ability to absorb damage and nullify the enemies’ attacks.

Cleric

Keep in mind that your Cleric is there to support and help the party. Sure they can deal some good damage, especially against undead, but their main purpose is going to be to help others.

They don’t tank as well as fighters, and they don’t hit as hard as rangers, so don’t expect them to. Be prepared to help those around you when they need it. Put your ability scores where they will increase the effectiveness of your powers so that your healing powers work when you need them to.

Warlord

Remember that a Warlord is out there to help his teammates. Of all the characters in the party he is least equipped to go it alone. You won’t find the warlord solo killing any bosses, so don’t try it. Put your points (INT, CHA, STR) where they can be used most effectively to give your party a boost.

The warlord needs some mobility, but also needs to keep his defenses high. Invest in good armor and armor capabilities. Often when he takes too much damage he has to spend time and resources getting himself out of trouble instead of helping others. So make the effort to give yourself some decent defenses and survivability.

Wizard

Perhaps the biggest challenge to overcome is understanding that wizards as a concept have changed in 4^th edition. Personally I find nothing wrong with that, in fact I think there are a lot of things right about it, but that isn’t the point of this article.

In general, if you want to play a good wizard, then find the spells that are going to help you stay alive early on. Magic Missile, as always is a solid spell. You’ll want to put your stat points where they will help out your attacks more than anything. You will find yourself under attack from time to time and early on you’ll need that protection as you won’t be doing as much damage as other players at early levels.

Also don’t forget about the potential of the rituals. These are often overlooked, and can add depth and power to your character.

Rogue

You probably won’t find any better information that what you can find on that thread.

Keep in mind that your rogue is designed to do big damage, but they don’t generally have the hit points or defensive capabilities of other characters.

Rogues have the advantage of being able to diversify their abilities quite easily, but like all characters they will benefit greatly if you try to specialize in an area where your party needs the support.

That’s if for today. Until next time, have fun!

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Last time we talked about the specific difficulties that newer players may have when deciding what kind of character to play. Today we’ll address the same concern with a more experienced player who may be feeling a bit burned out.

So you think you’ve played everything under the sun. Well, I’m sure you have. What’s more, you’ve played with people who have played everything you weren’t interested in trying out yourself. When we play with a group we experience pieces of each character in the party, almost as if we were playing those characters ourselves.

So what do you do?

Option one: Play the stand-by character. Go back to the tried and true. Your old favorite. Re-create the first character you ever played.

Option two: Ask your DM or party what they need. A lot of times other members of your group will have decided what they want to play and they just need something to round the party out. This will at least give you an idea of where to start.

Option three: Play a random character. Use any random number generator to choose a race and class.

If none of these ideas work, then look around for inspiration.

• Scan the internet. Plenty of D&D sites and forums out there.
• Look at your fantasy books (you know you have them).
• Watch an action movie.
• Look at some old TV. shows.

If all else fails, drop me an email and I’ll tell you what to play

As always, remember its about the fun!

Click here for part 1

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Here is a pretty common dilemma for both experienced and new D&D aficionados alike.

For new players, they often don’t know what to expect from any of the individual classes so they just stare at the Player’s Handbook and hope someone tells them what to do. More experienced players have already seen it and done it and don’t want more of the same.

Today we’ll address the new player.

If you’re new to the game or if you’re helping someone new, the first thing to remember is to focus on the personality you want to play.

Don’t get overwhelmed with the rules and specifics of any powers or classes. Instead focus on the kind of hero you want to play.

Do you want to:

• Bash face at close quarters?
• Be mysterious and sneaky?
• Use spells to help the team?
• Strike from the shadows?
• Become a forest guardian?
• Serve in the town guard?

The idea is simple. Decide on the character’s place in the world and go with it. Your DM or a more experienced player can help you with the math and filling out your character sheet.

Another pitfall common to new players (as well as experienced players) is focusing too much on what the character could become. Dungeons and Dragons is a game about progress and change. There will be roughly 300 encounters, some 100 sessions between level 1 and level 30. If you play once per week that means that any plans you make for your character won’t be happening for several months at a minimum. Thinking about what the future could bring often stifles the decision making process of today.

Dungeons and Dragons offers you the ability to pretend to be whoever you want. Character creation gives you the chance to pick that person. If you focus on who you want to play in the future you may end up disappointed as the campaign may well go a completely different direction.

If all else fails, you can always play a random or premade character. There’s no harm in using someone else’s ideas until you get your feet wet.

Hope this helps, and as always have a great D&D night.

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Every campaign has monsters and treasure.  Even the most plot driven campaign will have things to kill and loot to grab.  That doesn’t mean that combat is the only thing.

A part of Dungeons and Dragons is the story.  For many players and Dungeon Masters the story is the big part.  It is the reason they started playing in the first place.

As greed sets in, however, many players lose sight of the story.  While the story does not necessarily need to be the center of the entertainment, for many players it is still very important.  One of the most common complaints I hear is that one player or another refuses to play to the story.

While there is no need to cling blindly to any DM’s plot, it is a good idea to pay attention to and find enjoyment in the story as it unfolds.  What are the clues that are being given away early on?  Where will they lead?  Often the story elements are tied closely to the most powerful magic items and most interesting NPC’s.

When the DM introduces a particularly interesting person, sit up and pay attention.  Take a moment to enjoy a good role-playing exchange.  If you can, try to step outside of yourself a little and play your character as well.  As you get into the story, the events of the campaign will have more meaning for you as a player, and the long journey up the level ladder will become more enjoyable.

Watch out for players who want to enjoy the story.  Pay attention to their needs.  For these people, combat encounters can be drudgery.  Even the reward of loot doesn’t mean much.  When their moment to shine comes, usually in town and outside of combat, give them the time they need to play up their character.  Most of the memorable moments in my role-playing career happened outside of combat.  These moments can help cement friendships, and often are what keep players coming back in-spite of other poor outcomes in the game.

As always, enjoy your next Dungeons and Dragons session

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