We chatted with James about his fun and quirky website “Let it Be Gnome”

James is fascinated by all things gnome-related and also a fan of gaming which makes D&D a particularly fascinating experience. He has a website all about gnomes which includes an in-depth look at gnomes in D&D. We talked with him about the website, as well as any helpful tips he has for role-playing a gnome in D&D!

Your website is a lot of fun! What gave you this idea to have a hub of information centered on Gnomes?

“I have always had an interest in gnomes but when I wanted to find out more about them on the internet there seemed to be a lack of information on them so I thought that I would help people by giving them more info! I love how quirky they are and that there is a wide and diverse history to them that many people seem to be unaware of and I hope to make them more informed.”

What do you like about the way that D&D portrays Gnomes?

“I love how they are not depicted in the stereotypical image of a gnome but that they have made them more humanlike but still used some of their known characteristics such as their eccentric sense of humor (one of my favorites!) and inquisitiveness. Some of the D&D gnome artwork that I have seen online is simply incredible and really breathes a lot of life into the mythology of gnomes beyond that which is in the mainstream such as the beard, hat, big boots and belly.”

What is your favorite D&D Gnome subrace?

“Mine is the Forest Gnome as I love their boldness and ability to take risks. I always find myself drawn to others that like to change things in big ways and feel that Forest Gnomes are subrace of gnomes that are most likely to do this.”

If you were to roleplay a Gnome character in D&D, what would they be like?

“They would be a fearless, swashbuckling hero! I love Forest Gnomes and how they are bold and enjoy taking risks and my gnome would be of this subrace and have experiences that others would talk about for generations. This gnome would have a talent for art and when not engaging in exciting adventures would spend their time creating original works of art that they would work on in their charmingly designed home in the woods. This penchant for art and creativity would also rear its head during battle when they would use their ability to cast creative illusions on their enemies.”

Your list of Gnome names is very impressive! What do you think goes into a good Gnomish-sounding name?

“I like a gnome name which is something that you would not expect but, after getting to know the name and the gnome, it somehow fits. I think that something like “Lutliten Twistwhistle” is a great example of this as it does not really bring up any images for me, but I think it would fit a mysterious, generally fun character such as a gnome.”

Truthfully we don’t see a lot of Gnome protagonists in fantasy settings. Why do you think this is?

“Their popularity seems to change from year to year and so I think that this is part of the reason and I also think that it is because they have generally been changed, at least in the mainstream, into this comedic character that people have as statues in their gardens and yards. I think this means that people just see them as something to make people laugh but, as D&D shows, they can have a lot more depth than this.”

However, I think that in recent years we have seen some movies based around gnomes and I think that people growing up having watched these movies who then go on to make their own fantasy stories will use this experience to make feature them as the protagonist.

What is the most interesting Gnome fact you’ve come across?

“The Noggin Clontith/youve been gnomed.wmv gnome meme video has been viewed over 14.5 million times on YouTube!”

You can check out the fun site “Let it Be Gnome” via this link!

Bardic Inspiration, Storytelling, TTRPGs

Bardic Inspiration: Music for Fey and other Nature Themes

September 28, 2021October 20, 2023 Thread of Souls

We list some of the best songs to use while you and your players explore Fey worlds

Dungeons & Dragons released its latest book, Wild Beyond the Witchlight. It’s all about the mysterious and wonderful plane known as the Feywild. While it may sound like a fantastical place to visit, it’s not all fairies and unicorns and not all of them are kind. There are also sinister creatures that fight over control of the Feywild and those who live there.

The Feywild

The Feywild is ruled by creatures called archfey; incredibly powerful spellcasters or tricksters who may be good or evil. It’s a land of enchantment, nature, and mystical creatures. You’ll find hags, giants, walking and talking trees and plants, pixies, rabbitfolk, and many other animals now able to speak.

So, what music would work best for a setting such as the Feywild? We’ve got a few of our favorites all on Spotify.

Feywild Music

“Deku Palace” is for those wild and crazy nights in the Feywild. It also works well as an introduction for characters getting there. Maybe they’re at a party that gets a bit out of hand and something pulls them there. Perhaps an archfey casts dancing magic upon the party and they are forced to dance to the beat, or it serves as the backdrop of a magnificent tree castle.

“Gruntilda’s Lair” from Banjo-Kazooie is all about the main antagonist, a witch/hag. As hags can be found in the Feywild it’s fitting for meeting a hag who may or may not be evil.

“Dalentarth” from Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is practically made for the Feywild. The game is set in a world that is similar to the chaotic plane. It’s full of archfey, unique creatures, and magical artifacts that fit in nicely with any campaign set in the Feywild.

The entire soundtrack pairs nicely with the overall Feywild theme.

With that being the case, we also suggest “Alabastra”. It goes well with meeting mysterious people or entering a dark and spooky area such as a corrupted forest or hag’s lair.

“Faren’s Flier” from Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns is great for describing areas of the Feywild the party is about to visit. It can also make for a great backdrop to traveling.

Sticking with Guild Wars, “Auric Wilds” is one we use quite often for traversing dense jungles or overgrown ruins.

In related Dungeons & Dragons news, the “Future of D&D” panel at this year’s D&D Celebration revealed a look at what’s next for D&D. Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse, is a collection of an assortment of art, stats, and upgraded information regarding monsters, creatures, and more. Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse releases in January 2022.

D&D is also working on a brand new set releasing in 2024.

Storytelling, TTRPGs

Top Tips to Improve your Roleplaying

September 9, 2021October 20, 2023 Thread of Souls

We take a look at excellent ways to improve your TTRPG roleplaying skills!

For those of us that enjoy roleplaying games being in-character is a thrilling and fun experience. But if you are new to the craft, or are feeling daunted by other players’ talents at the table, don’t worry! We’ve put together a list of ways to help you not only improve, but also feel more confident in yourself and in your delivery of the character. After all, you are the vessel through which their story is being told, and we know you want to do them justice.

Expand Your Knowledge of Their Life

A great way to improve your roleplaying is to expand your knowledge of the character. After all, you can’t act out what you don’t understand. Even if these things never come up in-game, it all contributes to the decisions your character makes, how they react to situations, and their personality.

Take time to write down things about their life. We definitely recommend using any of those fun online questionnaires you find about characters. These ask a variety of questions that will have you thinking creatively about your character.

Be In-Character Outside of the Game

We cannot recommend enough how much being in-character outside of our homebrew TTRPG game has improved our roleplaying. Try to spend some time as them while doing tasks around the house. If you are with another player in the game, try just having an in-character conversation. It’s amazing how much their voice develops when you can be them in casual situations.

Add Some Narration to Your Character

Dialogue drives a story, as does the lack of something to say by a character in a situation. But when you are at the table, it can also be extremely beneficial to narrate your character’s current emotional state. This helps bring a full-body experience into your roleplaying. Try things like:

“They just sit huddled in the corner and don’t look at anybody.”

“They start stomping back and forth across the room and muttering under their breath.”

“They fidget in anxiety and keep glancing over their shoulder.”

Allow Yourself to Be Open

The final piece of advice we have is to allow yourself to be open. Being vulnerable as yourself and as your character will bring your roleplaying far. But this is where having a trusted table you play with is vitally important. Whether you play as part of a big group or are in a single-player campaign, you must surround yourself with like-minded, kind people who want the same thing you want from the game. If someone else is being open and raw with their character’s emotions at the table, it will make it all the easier for you to rise to that level, as well.

Storytelling, TTRPGs

A Handy Guide to Progressing the Narrative in Your Story

September 8, 2021October 20, 2023 Thread of Souls

Plot is important to keep the narrative moving. We discuss ways you can push forward the story to keep readers, viewers, and players engaged.

There have been times when we watch a movie or play a game where the plot just bogs down. It may not pull us out of the immersion but it can make things a little less fun and interesting. Stories should constantly be developing and shifting. It’s what makes them captivating and intriguing.

As fantasy authors, we fell in love with Lord of the Rings. While watching Fellowship for the thousandth time the other day we noticed ways the movie progresses the story. There is always something else that happens to advance the plot. We’re not talking about how Frodo has to take the ring to Mordor. It’s deeper than that.

It’s in the moments where the crebain from Dunland arrive and the party is forced to take cover. Or when the Fellowship must choose between going over the pass of Caradhras, through the Gap of Rohan, or into the Mines of Moria. There are multiple examples in the films that constantly usher the narrative forward. Without these moments, the story falls flat. It would just be a montage of the main characters traveling from point A to point B.

Beginning – End

Having a starting point and an endpoint should be the first things you come up with. Knowing where you want your story to go will help you fill out everything in the middle. This works for novels, movies, Dungeons & Dragons, and comics.

Like with Lord of the Rings: The Ring of Power has returned and found itself in the hands of a hobbit. The main characters learn it must be destroyed within the fires of Mt. Doom where it was created.

Everything in the middle is where you develop characters and introduce obstacles. These can be summed up as encounters.

Encounters, Encounters, Encounters

When you think about structuring a story like a TTRPG it makes it a bit more simple. Encounters are designed to challenge characters. They can range from social interactions, combat, and travel. One of the most important factors of an encounter is it should always advance the plot.

For example. In the Two Towers when the refugees are traveling to Helm’s Deep the caravan is attacked by orcs and wargs. It lets the viewer and characters know Sauron is watching them. He knows their plans and is actively trying to stop them. If it were just some random orc attack it wouldn’t mean much for the story. If that were the case it would be an inconvenience and readers wouldn’t connect with it.

Every encounter your characters come across should revolve around the story. Whether it lets the characters know the enemy is onto them or reveals a detail about a character, plot thread, or villain.

Lore Driven

Encounters are also great ways to introduce lore. If you’re writing a book, it makes more sense to tell a streamlined story without filler or fluff. But there are times when even the best of novels introduce threads that lead nowhere. It’s best to avoid these altogether so you don’t leave your viewers confused.

This can best be summed up with random encounter tables. They have their place but we’re not big fans of them. If you do end up using a random encounter table make sure it is connected to your story. It could be connected to a character, NPC, or the overarching plot.

We’ll pull an example from our fantasy series Thread of Souls. In book two Ash & Thunder, a few characters find themselves in ancient elven ruins. Brought there by Jade’s brother to investigate a strange creature.

“As they turned into another room, they pulled up short and stifled surprised gasps. Curled in the far corner was a giant spider. The size of a horse, it was clearly dead and had been for some time. The torchlight cast its twisted shadow three times as big on the wall behind it. “Yuck,” Heron shivered.

“I have never seen one so big!” Skar gasped. “I am going to take one of its hairs.” He shuffled over, already getting out a pouch. Artemis glanced sidelong at Jade. “Do you get big spiders in Oceala?” The Druid stared at the dead creature, perplexed. “Well, no. But come to think of it . . . It has been awhile since I’ve seen a spider.” “One this size?” Unolé clarified. Jade shook her head, chewing on her lip in consideration. “No, any spiders.”

The missing spiders are the driving force of our story. Instead of delving into some unknown ruin, this reveal makes the story feel much more connected. While other characters may have known this information, Jade and the others just learned it.

In the case of the mysterious creature, it helps paint a better picture of the Deep Hollows where the spiders have the largest presence.

Here are some quick ways you can advance the plot:

Notes, Records, or Ledgers
Character Monologue
Characters Discover Information
An Enemy Tracks the Characters
An Enemy Becomes an Ally / Vice Versa
An Obstacle Presents an Opportunity

Storytelling

Complete List to Describe Character Appearance Aside from Color

August 12, 2021October 31, 2023 Thread of Souls

We give a full list of words that will describe your character’s appearance better than just the color of their hair, skin, and eyes.

Word choice is really powerful when it comes to describing a character in your book, TTRPG game, or other story format. And while the fact that their hair is blond and their eyes are green is typically first in mind, there are stronger words we can use! That is not to say color is irrelevant. I am one of the readers that does, indeed, want to know a character’s eye color because I am a visual reader and picture things cinematically. But let’s combine that deep brown with other adjectives. These will tell us a lot more about the character’s personality.

So here is a list of adjectives to pull from when describing a character! For a fun exercise, try randomly choosing one from each list to create a character from scratch!

Words to Describe Character Build

Powerful
Slight
Heavy
Slim
Solid
Delicate
Strong
Stocky
Sturdy
Graceful
Petite
Slender

Words to Describe Character Cheekbones / Cheeks

High
Prominent
Sculptured
Chubby
Hollow
Sunken
Dimpled
Creased
Pale
Ruddy

Words to Describe Character Arms or Legs

Long
Short
Lanky
Bony
Round
Soft
Solid

Words to Describe Character Eyes

Expressive
Calculating
Narrow
Hooded
Upturned
Downturned
Untrusting
Round
Big
Vacant
Unfocused

Words to Describe Character Voice

Breathy
Flat
Grating
Throaty
Honeyed
Tight
Brittle
Gruff
Monotonous
Silvery
Hoarse
Nasal
Rough
Singsong
Thick
Wobbly
Husky
Wheezy
Orotund

Words to Describe Character Hair

Shiny
Dull
Wild
Untamed
Flat
Thin
Thick
Silky
Frizzy
Coarse
Stringy
Wiry
Wispy
Bouncy
Messy
Oily
Tousled

Let’s take an example from the end of Ash & Thunder within the Thread of Souls book series. Here we see a combination of color as well as descriptive words to give personality to the characters.

“They were the strangest pair Unolé had ever seen. One was a strong female Dwarf with fiery, wild hair of different colors. She wore hardy clothes of deep brown leathers with a purple shirt underneath. Although her thick hair was pulled around front to try to hide her face, Unolé could tell something was strange. The Dwarf’s skin had a grayish blue tone. A beard covered her jawline, but even past that Unolé could tell she was very pretty, with full, dark lips and upturned green eyes framed by thick lashes. She glanced about nervously, fingers twitching towards the two swords she had at her hips. The oddest thing about her, though, was the barrel strapped to her back.

Unolé’s eyes moved to the man. Standing barely taller than her, he leaned confidently against the bar. A cloak draped over his slender figure. She took in clothes of mostly black accented by white and silver. A hood shadowed his face, but slits in the side revealed long, pointed Elven ears. He was exceptionally handsome, with a sharp jawline and high cheekbones. But there was something odd about him, as well. His skin was gray, and two yellow irises were set in large, expressive eyes. Strands of white hair hung on either side of his face.”

Storytelling

The Ultimate List of 100 Character Flaws

August 7, 2021October 31, 2023 Thread of Souls

We provide your one-stop list for character flaws, as well as a fun exercise to create dynamic characters!

Creating a character is a difficult task. There are several things to consider from what do they look like, how do they sound, how do they act, and what makes them who they are? All of these things and more should be focused on when building a character. But you should also focus on their weakness or flaws.

These types of traits can be anything from fear, a vice, or failing. They could also be something another character can use against them or hold over their head. It may even be another person. Someone they are afraid to speak with or even see. Whatever it is, characters with weaknesses are more engaging to readers as they are more realistic.

Character Building Exercise: Choose five numbers randomly, or use one of those random number generation tools online. Or roll a d100 five times! Write down those five traits and create a character out of them. Decide how this personality happened. What in the character’s past caused these traits to form? How do they use them? Do they fully understand them? If there are contradicting ones, what caused this internal battle?

Absent-Minded
Abusive
Anxious
Arrogant
Bashful
Belligerent
Betrayal
Bigmouth
Blunt
Bold
Childish
Clumsy
Compulsive
Covetous
Coward
Crude
Cruel
Curious
Daydream
Deceitful
Disloyal
Driven by Goals
Drunkard
Egotistical
Emotionless
Envious
Fanatical
Fearful
Fickle
Finicky
Flawless
Flirty
Forgetful
Gambling
Gluttony
Greedy
Grumpy
Hubris
Hunted for betraying someone
Ignorant
Immature
Impatient
In Debt
Infamy
Inquisitive
Jealous
Judgmental
Kleptomaniac
Klutz
Lazy
Lewd
Lies
Lustful
Manipulative
Materialistic
Messy
Meek
Mischievous
Naïve
Nervous
Nosey
Obsessed
Obsessive
Pacifist
Paranoid
Perfectionist
Pessimistic
Poor Hygiene
Powerless
Predictable
Prideful
Procrastination
Rapacious
Rebellious
Reckless
Remorseless
Rude
Sacrilegious
Sarcastic
Seducer
Selfish
Shallow
Shameful
Showy
Shy
Skeptical
Solemn
Spoiled
Stern in Thought
Stubborn
Superstitious
Suspicious of Others
Swindler
Timid
Too Trusting
Unable to Trust
Unfaithful
Unreliable
Vain
Wrathful

Storytelling, TTRPGs

How Adding A Neutral Party can Enhance your Story

August 5, 2021October 20, 2023 Thread of Souls

**We look to series like Dragon Age and Pirates of the Caribbean see how adding a third neutral party can help you tell more engaging stories**

It’s typical storytelling to follow the protagonist versus the antagonist. But what if there was a third party introduced to the mix? One that got in the way of both others. One with their own agenda. How would that change a story? We’ll use Dragon Age and Pirates of the Caribbean as examples of how you can use a third party to develop your story.

Story Example

The next Dragon Age game may be a ways off but the stories and characters of Thedas span more than just video games. There are several novels and comic books you can sink into until the fourth game’s release. The most recent comic being Dragon Age: Dark Fortress.

SPOILER WARNING: Content may spoil events from the games. You have been warned. We will avoid major spoilers.

Dark Fortress follows fan-favorite character Fenris as he hunts down the son of his former master Danarius. Throughout the three-issue run, we learn that Tevinter mages are creating another powerful warrior like Fenris. It’s something the Qunari aren’t huge fans of either so they show up to put an end to it. Fenris teams up with characters from previous comics and they work together to track down the mages.

Towards the end of the run, events collide and the three groups end up facing off against one another. It’s a story that is familiar to the Dragon Age series and plays out many times throughout. Yet it never feels overused: Quanri vs

Things are going rather well for the protagonist when all of the sudden, the Qunari arrive and they have to rethink their strategy.

How You Can Adapt it

It’s an example that can be used in any TTRPG or novel for that matter. It is a great way to increase tension and build lore in your world as well. Your characters may think they are the only ones hunting down a specific enemy, item, or person but what if they weren’t? Perhaps a third party shows up at inconvenient moments to get in their way. Plots like this are a great way to develop your story and add suspense and action to the mix.

Just when the characters think they’ve got the upper hand, the third party comes in and trips them up. This third group can be evil, good, or neutral. Their motivations can vary from stopping the other two parties, stopping one party, or just adding a little chaos.

Take the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean movie for example. On Stranger Tides follows Spanish and English soldiers as they search for the Fountain of Youth. The third party consists of Jack Sparrow and the crew of the Queen Anne’s Revenge. The climax sees English troops fighting the pirates over control of the fountain before Spanish soldiers arrive and destroy it. After their task is done, they just walk away without fighting anyone.

Introducing a third party to the story can change the flow of the narrative. It’s interesting, adds detail to your world, and gives your payers a reason to think of new ways to handle situations. Although, don’t overdo it.

So, give it a shot the next time your characters are after the BBEG or magical artifact. You never know how it will change your story and keep everyone on their toes.

Storytelling

How to Use the Emotion Wheel to Tell Better Stories

July 31, 2021October 31, 2023 Thread of Souls

We discuss how reading and referencing the Emotion Wheel can enhance your character and story building.

Perhaps you have seen the Emotion Wheel pictured online? This large colorful wheel starts with six “basic” emotions and then gets more and more specific with the next two rings in the wheel. It was created by late psychologist Robert Plutchik. It was made to help people better understand and verbalize their own emotions. But it also has great applications for storytellers. Whether your focus is on writing a story or roleplaying a character, looking at the Emotion Wheel has tremendous benefits.

Writing Better Characters

This Emotion Wheel can be a great benefit to your writing. Consulting this helps to understand the complexities of personalities, emotions, and reactions to situations. Use it to build more believable villains, to craft stronger character motivations, and to ensure your story is character-driven instead of plot-driven. Let’s use some examples from our own Thread of Souls book:

After pirate Sen’s capture in Book 1, we see great fear in him in Book 2. Fear of interplanar travel and associations. If we look at Fear on the list, we can move to the next ring. Sen is feeling Scared. Why is he scared? What is the base? We look at the final outer ring. Sen feels Helpless. Helpless that a Dragonborn as big and strong as he can still be imprisoned and tortured.
Healer Taliesin is feeling Sad about crossing the priestesses that rule his city which caused them to punish him. What is the root of his Sadness? The next ring clarifies that he is feeling Despair. Why is he feeling Despair? The final ring can clarify that he’s feeling Powerless. Powerless at the oppressive matriarchal system that governs his city.

Roleplaying Characters

If you enjoy TTRPG’s, you are asked to fully become your character each game session. Now if your playing style is just to snack and roll dice while not being story-invested, that is fine. We hope you found a group who plays that style. But as we saw from our D&D survey, most people that play are emotionally-driven and insightful. And to avoid being the person who simply shrugs decisions off with “That’s what my character would do”, we can have a better understanding of actually why.

When thinking about your character between games, consult the Emotion Wheel to help interpret their actions last game, as well as what they are planning next game. For example, if your character is feeling Joy, what is the source of that Joy? Are they feeling Satisfied or Amused? If your character is Angry, what is the root cause? Are they Frustrated or Jealous? Knowing what goes on inside your character will help guide your actions next game. And help you bring a more authentic experience to the table.

Storytelling

The Ultimate List of 100 Character Personality Traits

July 29, 2021October 31, 2023 Thread of Souls

We provide your one-stop list for personality traits, as well as a fun exercise to create dynamic characters!

Personality traits are one of our top things to decide when creating a character. And unless you already have some inspiration, it can be a daunting task! We hope this comprehensive list is your final stop for a full list of personality traits. Use it to pick ones to help in your character creation! Or workout your character building muscles through the exercise below!

Character Building Exercise: Choose five numbers randomly, or use one of those random number generation tools online. Or roll a d100 five times! Write down those five traits and create a character out of them. Decide how this personality happened. What in the character’s past caused these traits to form? How do they use them? Do they fully understand them? If there are contradicting ones, what caused this internal battle?

Adventurous
Affectionate
Aggressive
Altruistic
Ambitious
Arrogant
Artistic
Assertive
Boastful
Calm
Capable
Carefree
Careful
Charming
Childish
Clever
Confident
Controlling
Cooperative
Cowardly
Curious
Decisive
Distracted
Distrusting
Dominant
Eloquent
Energetic
Expressive
Faithful
Fearless
Friendly
Funny
Generous
Greedy
Grumpy
Gullible
Happy
Hedonistic
Helpful
Homebody
Honest
Humble
Hyper
Idealistic
Imaginative
Impatient
Independent
Industrious
Insecure
Intelligent
Inventive
Jealous
Judgmental
Lazy
Logical
Loud
Loyal
Manipulative
Materialistic
Mature
Mean
Melodramatic
Mischievous
Noble
Nosy
Obedient
Observant
Obsessive
Open-Minded
Optimistic
Organized
Outgoing
Patient
Persuasive
Pessimistic
Pompous
Proud
Quiet
Realistic
Rebellious
Resilient
Resourceful
Reverent
Rowdy
Sarcastic
Selfish
Sensitive
Short-Tempered
Shy
Sincere
Stoic
Studious
Sweet
Thoughtful
Trusting
Unassuming
Unreliable
Unstable
Vibrant
Wise

Storytelling, TTRPGs

D&D Live 2021 – A Recap for Storytellers

July 19, 2021October 20, 2023 Thread of Souls

We look over the two days of fun for D&D Live 2021 and what we as storytellers can take away from it.

We look forward every year to D&D Live. While the pandemic has changed its format, it is still good fun and filled with interesting stories. We love to hear these small, often humor-filled one shot games, as well as learn about new products that may be of interest to us as storytellers. Let’s take a look at the highlights!

The New Books

This D&D Live talked about three of their new books coming out. Depending on the styles of stories you prefer, you can benefit from any number of these.

The big announcement was Fizban’s Treasury of Dragons. Fizban is a much-loved character from the Dragonlance book series. This book focuses on a variety of dragons, expanding the types, the lore, and even offers more subraces of Dragonborn. It explains the creation of the Material Plane in terms of draconic powers. This book is great for anyone that loves dragons and wants more of them in their stories.

Click the photo to go to Amazon’s pre-order page

They also discussed two recently revealed books. The first is The Wild Beyond the Witchlight. Do you like creepy carnival vibes? Things that look whimsical but are actually disturbing? This book is for you. It is centered on the plane known as the Feywild and expands the lore around that greatly. As fans of all the different planes in D&D, we definitely like books like this!

The final book is a mix of D&D and Magic: the Gathering in Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos. Let your magical student dreams come to life! You can balance classes, extracurricular activities, cliques, and adventures in this supplemental guide. This one caught our attention most of all and we will definitely be purchasing it when it becomes available.

The Games

There were a bunch of fun games throughout the two days. Our focus here is going to be on what storytellers can learn about running games, role-playing, and telling stories from each of these.

The Lost Odyssey: Last Light Table – This game was DM’d by Kate Welch and had Jack Black, Reggie Watts, Lauren Lapkus, Kevin Smith, Jason Mewes, and Tiffany Haddish all playing. This game was a good demonstration that you don’t need a complex storyline or a lot of seriousness to play a fun oneshot. As always, Kate Welch does great in rolling with the antics of energetic new players to keep the story going forward while also allowing them to goof off.

The Chaos Carnival Table – DM’d by Aabria Iyengar with players Xavier Woods, Ember Moon, Mace, and Tyler Breeze. A mix of the creepy and spontaneous, this game showed you can have silly characters thrust into very dark situations and it still works. Aabria’s character voices are always a pleasure to listen to as she is a great actor.

The Fluffybonks and Guzzleshucks Table – DM’d by Amy Vorpahl with players DrLupo, Negaoryx, Ify Nwadiwe, Kevin Pereira, Adam Sessler, and Fiona Nova. Venturing into the depraved world of the Feywild, this story was a good example of how a very diverse cast of characters – some being quite silly and others being quite serious – can still come together to drive plot forward. Amy rolled with multiple “delays” to speed up the story and keep things on track within the time limit gracefully, a great lesson on DM’ing.

The Palace of the Vampire Queen Table – DM’d by B. Dave Walters with players Patton Oswalt, Nicke Peine, Marisa Baram, Allyson Snyder, and Jacob Houston. We have played in B. Dave’s games before and what we love best about his storytelling style is that he has a way of making non-combat situations feel tense, dynamic, and that there is plenty to do. This was the case in this game centered around a ballroom-esque invitation to a palace where things were more than they seemed.

Beadle & Grimm’s Faster, Purple Worm! Kill! Kill! Table – DM’d by Jon Ciccolini with Bill Rehor, the players were Seth Green, B. Dave Walters, Deborah Ann Wohl, and Xander Jeanneret. A benefit for the charities that money was raised for across these two days, this game was a good example that it is okay to offer difficult situations and kill characters if the story calls for it.

Summary

All in all, this was another fun D&D Live event that shares of love of stories, of ever-growing worlds, and of helpful products and tools so you can continue to tell what is in your heart.