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Welcome back to Night City, where Tyler has acquired a another cat, Randall has acquired a bedazzled bulletproof vest, and Ash has apparently acquired the Cyberpunk equivalent of Five Nights at Freddy's. This week, Marky Day becomes Marky Knight and walks willingly into something everyone immediately identifies as a murder hallway. Dave gets set on fire by a computer, Marky discovers that cartoon mascots are weak against bullets, and together they spend every remaining resource to adopt a homicidal digital hyena. Somehow, all of this turns out to be the easy part, because at the end of the hallway is a cybernetic nightmare, their kidnapped employer, and a corporate executive offering them double their money to please stop asking questions. Welcome to Cyberpunk RED, chooms. Capitalism has a boss fight. Show Notes Marky Day and Dave Costanzo reach the twentieth floor of Discom and immediately discover that the cheerful corporate mascots are actually armed security drones. While Marky fights Buster Swine and Electric Bunny in meat space, Dave dives into the Net Architecture, battles a Hellhound, catches fire, and eventually hijacks Hyperactive Hyena to turn Discom's own security against itself. After stabilizing a seriously wounded Marky, Dave pushes deeper into the network and uncovers evidence that Discom has been targeting local 3D artists. J-ZK's name has been crossed off the list with the ominous note that she is no longer an issue. Behind the final door, they find J-ZK restrained and wired into machinery. Mr. Frommiter reveals that he is also Gangster 3D and admits that he kidnapped her after she refused to work for Discom. He offers Marky and Dave double their original payment to walk away. Marky chooses violence. Key Takeaways Marky battles Discom's armed mascot drones while Dave Netruns simultaneously. Dave survives a Hellhound attack, gets set on fire, and later loses his Sword program to an Asp. Marky is seriously wounded but stabilized with First Aid. Dave spends all his Luck to hijack Hyperactive Hyena and turn it against Discom. Discom has been pressuring and recruiting 3D artists across Night City. Mr. Frommiter and Gangster 3D are the same person. J-ZK has been kidnapped and forcibly connected to Discom's equipment. Frommiter offers the team double their pay to leave. The episode ends immediately before the boss fight. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia https://ashelydm.com/ https://ashelydm.com/ Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome back to Night City, where Tyler has acquired a another cat, Randall has acquired a bedazzled bulletproof vest, and Ash has apparently acquired the Cyberpunk equivalent of Five Nights at Freddy's. This week, Marky Day becomes Marky Knight and walks willingly into something everyone immediately identifies as a murder hallway. Dave gets set on fire by a computer, Marky discovers that cartoon mascots are weak against bullets, and together they spend every remaining resource to adopt a homicidal digital hyena. Somehow, all of this turns out to be the easy part, because at the end of the hallway is a cybernetic nightmare, their kidnapped employer, and a corporate executive offering them double their money to please stop asking questions. Welcome to Cyberpunk RED, chooms. Capitalism has a boss fight. Show Notes Marky Day and Dave Costanzo reach the twentieth floor of Discom and immediately discover that the cheerful corporate mascots are actually armed security drones. While Marky fights Buster Swine and Electric Bunny in meat space, Dave dives into the Net Architecture, battles a Hellhound, catches fire, and eventually hijacks Hyperactive Hyena to turn Discom's own security against itself. After stabilizing a seriously wounded Marky, Dave pushes deeper into the network and uncovers evidence that Discom has been targeting local 3D artists. J-ZK's name has been crossed off the list with the ominous note that she is no longer an issue. Behind the final door, they find J-ZK restrained and wired into machinery. Mr. Frommiter reveals that he is also Gangster 3D and admits that he kidnapped her after she refused to work for Discom. He offers Marky and Dave double their original payment to walk away. Marky chooses violence. Key Takeaways Marky battles Discom's armed mascot drones while Dave Netruns simultaneously. Dave survives a Hellhound attack, gets set on fire, and later loses his Sword program to an Asp. Marky is seriously wounded but stabilized with First Aid. Dave spends all his Luck to hijack Hyperactive Hyena and turn it against Discom. Discom has been pressuring and recruiting 3D artists across Night City. Mr. Frommiter and Gangster 3D are the same person. J-ZK has been kidnapped and forcibly connected to Discom's equipment. Frommiter offers the team double their pay to leave. The episode ends immediately before the boss fight. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia https://ashelydm.com/ https://ashelydm.com/ Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome to Night City, where housing is a shipping container, breakfast is kibble, and your most reliable neighbor is a rat named Greg. This week, Marky Day and Dave Costanzo accept a perfectly normal freelance job involving stalking, blackmail, corporate espionage, breaking and entering, and possibly assault. Fortunately, Marky has love in his heart, a mandolin in his bag, and the negotiating instincts to voluntarily reduce their payment by half. Dave, meanwhile, is an elite Netrunner capable of defeating corporate security, provided nobody asks him to walk quietly across a lobby without falling directly onto his face. Show Notes Marky Day and Dave Costanzo officially enter Night City for their first Cyberpunk RED adventure, but not before Tyler reveals that peer pressure convinced him to contact Brennan Lee Mulligan and possibly recover DiceGoblin.com. Having exhausted all responsible business decisions, the group finally turns to crime. Marky wakes in his increasingly hot storage container, works out, eats some kibble, and contemplates writing a song about how love could solve society's problems. He is a rockerboy, vigilante, and aggressively compassionate street philosopher who will never judge someone too harshly, though he may beat them up for their own personal growth. Next door, Dave Costanzo lives among cables, computer equipment, and spilled kibble. His breakfast is quickly claimed by Greg, the local rat and apparently the most dependable member of the team. Their morning changes when Marky receives a call from J-ZK, a colorful fashion designer and 3D weapons artist who helped support his music career. A rival artist calling himself Gangster 3D has been stalking her, threatening her, attempting to hack her agent, and using stolen private material to blackmail her. She believes he may also sabotage an important presentation to Sanroo. J-ZK asks Marky and Dave to break into the Discom corporate building, find Gangster 3D's operation, and steal the incriminating information from his computer. She initially offers them 5,000 eddies, but Marky decides that is far too generous and successfully negotiates their pay down to 2,500 each. Somewhere in Night City, a fixer feels a sudden disturbance in the economy. To get inside, Marky uses Charismatic Impact to locate one of his corporate fans at the Afterlife. John John may not work for Discom, but he works for Biotechnica and is willing to escort them to the building and vouch for them at security. Marky supports their cover story with a crumpled folder of sheet music masquerading as confidential briefing documents. Once inside, the pair begins searching for a network access point. Marky moves through the lobby like a seasoned professional. Dave rolls a critical failure on stealth, falls directly onto the floor, and explains to the nearby security guard that his shoe came untied. This works because security in Night City has apparently seen much worse before lunch. While Dave connects to the building's network, Marky provides cover by pretending to conduct an important corporate conversation. Dave bypasses a password, takes control of an employee-only door, and searches the network for information about Gangster 3D. He discovers the appointment calendar of Mr. Fromider, an executive on the twentieth floor. Fromider has met with Gangster 3D five times in the past two weeks and has also been meeting with several minor local artists. The pattern suggests that Gangster 3D may be involved in poaching artists like J-ZK for some larger corporate scheme. Marky and Dave slip into the private elevator, but Marky's incredible perception reveals a hidden sleep-gas system designed to incapacitate unauthorized passengers. Dave disables the device by cutting the correct wire, proving that he is significantly better at defeating electronic security than standing upright in public. The elevator still requires authorization, forcing Dave to jack into the network again. This time he must pass a Wisp Black ICE program to reach the elevator controls. He activates his Armor program, races past the hostile software, and successfully takes control of the elevator. The Wisp catches him before he can escape and attempts to damage his brain while reducing his available Net Actions. Dave's Armor absorbs the damage, allowing him to slide away from the pursuing program and safely jack out. The episode ends as the elevator begins climbing toward the twentieth floor. Marky and Dave are officially inside, Mr. Fromider is waiting somewhere above them, and the part of the mission where everything becomes violent has probably just begun. Key Takeaways The episode demonstrates how Cyberpunk RED combines social interaction, stealth, investigation, physical security, and Netrunning within the same mission. Marky's Charismatic Impact turns his fans into useful contacts. John John helps the team pass the building's first layer of security without violence. Marky and Dave complement each other well. Marky handles persuasion, distractions, and social situations, while Dave manages computers, access points, and electronic security. Critical successes and failures have immediate narrative effects. Marky repeatedly notices hidden dangers, while Dave's critical stealth failure nearly exposes the mission. Netrunners connect through physical access points and enter a layered Net Architecture containing passwords, files, control nodes, and Black ICE. Pathfinder allows a Netrunner to map parts of the architecture before moving deeper, reducing the risk of blindly encountering dangerous programs. Control nodes connect the digital and physical environments. Dave uses them to unlock an employee door and activate the private elevator. Disconnecting from a network resets most changes. A Netrunner must reach the bottom of the architecture and install a virus to create a lasting effect. Black ICE can attack a Netrunner directly, causing brain damage or interfering with their available Net Actions. Dave's Armor program completely absorbs the Wisp's damage, demonstrating the value of choosing and activating defensive programs before engaging hostile architecture. The team learns that Mr. Fromider has met repeatedly with Gangster 3D and several local artists, suggesting a broader scheme beyond J-ZK's personal blackmail problem. The adventure closes on a cliffhanger as Marky and Dave ascend toward the twentieth floor, having successfully completed the portion of the infiltration where nobody has shot them yet. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome to Night City, where housing is a shipping container, breakfast is kibble, and your most reliable neighbor is a rat named Greg. This week, Marky Day and Dave Costanzo accept a perfectly normal freelance job involving stalking, blackmail, corporate espionage, breaking and entering, and possibly assault. Fortunately, Marky has love in his heart, a mandolin in his bag, and the negotiating instincts to voluntarily reduce their payment by half. Dave, meanwhile, is an elite Netrunner capable of defeating corporate security, provided nobody asks him to walk quietly across a lobby without falling directly onto his face. Show Notes Marky Day and Dave Costanzo officially enter Night City for their first Cyberpunk RED adventure, but not before Tyler reveals that peer pressure convinced him to contact Brennan Lee Mulligan and possibly recover DiceGoblin.com. Having exhausted all responsible business decisions, the group finally turns to crime. Marky wakes in his increasingly hot storage container, works out, eats some kibble, and contemplates writing a song about how love could solve society's problems. He is a rockerboy, vigilante, and aggressively compassionate street philosopher who will never judge someone too harshly, though he may beat them up for their own personal growth. Next door, Dave Costanzo lives among cables, computer equipment, and spilled kibble. His breakfast is quickly claimed by Greg, the local rat and apparently the most dependable member of the team. Their morning changes when Marky receives a call from J-ZK, a colorful fashion designer and 3D weapons artist who helped support his music career. A rival artist calling himself Gangster 3D has been stalking her, threatening her, attempting to hack her agent, and using stolen private material to blackmail her. She believes he may also sabotage an important presentation to Sanroo. J-ZK asks Marky and Dave to break into the Discom corporate building, find Gangster 3D's operation, and steal the incriminating information from his computer. She initially offers them 5,000 eddies, but Marky decides that is far too generous and successfully negotiates their pay down to 2,500 each. Somewhere in Night City, a fixer feels a sudden disturbance in the economy. To get inside, Marky uses Charismatic Impact to locate one of his corporate fans at the Afterlife. John John may not work for Discom, but he works for Biotechnica and is willing to escort them to the building and vouch for them at security. Marky supports their cover story with a crumpled folder of sheet music masquerading as confidential briefing documents. Once inside, the pair begins searching for a network access point. Marky moves through the lobby like a seasoned professional. Dave rolls a critical failure on stealth, falls directly onto the floor, and explains to the nearby security guard that his shoe came untied. This works because security in Night City has apparently seen much worse before lunch. While Dave connects to the building's network, Marky provides cover by pretending to conduct an important corporate conversation. Dave bypasses a password, takes control of an employee-only door, and searches the network for information about Gangster 3D. He discovers the appointment calendar of Mr. Fromider, an executive on the twentieth floor. Fromider has met with Gangster 3D five times in the past two weeks and has also been meeting with several minor local artists. The pattern suggests that Gangster 3D may be involved in poaching artists like J-ZK for some larger corporate scheme. Marky and Dave slip into the private elevator, but Marky's incredible perception reveals a hidden sleep-gas system designed to incapacitate unauthorized passengers. Dave disables the device by cutting the correct wire, proving that he is significantly better at defeating electronic security than standing upright in public. The elevator still requires authorization, forcing Dave to jack into the network again. This time he must pass a Wisp Black ICE program to reach the elevator controls. He activates his Armor program, races past the hostile software, and successfully takes control of the elevator. The Wisp catches him before he can escape and attempts to damage his brain while reducing his available Net Actions. Dave's Armor absorbs the damage, allowing him to slide away from the pursuing program and safely jack out. The episode ends as the elevator begins climbing toward the twentieth floor. Marky and Dave are officially inside, Mr. Fromider is waiting somewhere above them, and the part of the mission where everything becomes violent has probably just begun. Key Takeaways The episode demonstrates how Cyberpunk RED combines social interaction, stealth, investigation, physical security, and Netrunning within the same mission. Marky's Charismatic Impact turns his fans into useful contacts. John John helps the team pass the building's first layer of security without violence. Marky and Dave complement each other well. Marky handles persuasion, distractions, and social situations, while Dave manages computers, access points, and electronic security. Critical successes and failures have immediate narrative effects. Marky repeatedly notices hidden dangers, while Dave's critical stealth failure nearly exposes the mission. Netrunners connect through physical access points and enter a layered Net Architecture containing passwords, files, control nodes, and Black ICE. Pathfinder allows a Netrunner to map parts of the architecture before moving deeper, reducing the risk of blindly encountering dangerous programs. Control nodes connect the digital and physical environments. Dave uses them to unlock an employee door and activate the private elevator. Disconnecting from a network resets most changes. A Netrunner must reach the bottom of the architecture and install a virus to create a lasting effect. Black ICE can attack a Netrunner directly, causing brain damage or interfering with their available Net Actions. Dave's Armor program completely absorbs the Wisp's damage, demonstrating the value of choosing and activating defensive programs before engaging hostile architecture. The team learns that Mr. Fromider has met repeatedly with Gangster 3D and several local artists, suggesting a broader scheme beyond J-ZK's personal blackmail problem. The adventure closes on a cliffhanger as Marky and Dave ascend toward the twentieth floor, having successfully completed the portion of the infiltration where nobody has shot them yet. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
The ranger's journey from level 5 to 20 is a majestic tale of growth, survival, and discovering that Hunter's Mark may not actually deserve permanent custody of your concentration. Randall's Gloom Stalker becomes an invisible crossbow machine, Ash's Drakewarden takes to the skies aboard a fire-breathing murder lizard, and Tyler spends sixteen levels converting every available feat, spell slot, and medical supply into increasingly desperate attempts to keep one flying snake alive. By level 20, two of these characters are legendary hunters. The third is still shouting, "Don't worry, buddy, I have Cure Wounds!" while filling out another pet insurance claim. Show Notes In this episode, we continue building our 2014 DnD 5e rangers, taking Randall's Gloom Stalker, Ash's Drakewarden, and Tyler's original Player's Handbook Beast Master from level 5 all the way to level 20. Extra Attack immediately improves everyone's combat potential, although Tyler is mostly excited because he can finally attack without ordering his flying snake to do it for him. From there, we examine the spells, feats, subclass features, and questionable design decisions that define the ranger's later levels. We also commit ranger heresy by asking whether Hunter's Mark is actually worth using. Magic Weapon offers better accuracy, reliable damage, an hour-long duration, and none of the constant bonus-action reassignment that interferes with Crossbow Expert, companion commands, and other important ranger abilities. As the builds gain more attacks and begin using Sharpshooter, improving the chance to hit becomes increasingly valuable, leaving Hunter's Mark standing in the wilderness wondering why nobody invited it to combat. The three subclasses develop very differently. Randall's Gloom Stalker continues doing Gloom Stalker things, including attacking repeatedly, disappearing into darkness, gaining Greater Invisibility, and generally becoming Batman with a crossbow. Ash's Drakewarden gains elemental damage, a flying companion, and a breath weapon that can turn a battlefield into an aerial geometry problem. Meanwhile, Tyler's Beast Master slowly crawls toward competence, eventually allowing his snake to attack twice and share spells, assuming it survives long enough to enjoy either feature. At the highest levels, the ranger's progression becomes much less exciting. Fifth-level spells offer a few useful options, Feral Senses arrives with awkward limitations, and the class gives players several excellent reasons to multiclass after level 15. The journey concludes with Foe Slayer, a capstone so underwhelming that the group proposes replacing it with a legendary death arrow capable of instantly killing enemies, because a level-20 ranger should receive something more exciting than occasionally adding Wisdom to one attack. Finally, the Question of the Week examines why players reacted differently to the DnD 2024 rules and the Pathfinder 2e Remaster. The discussion explores community expectations, the circumstances behind each revision, compatibility concerns, and the uncomfortable space occupied by an update that changes too much to feel like ordinary 5e but not enough to feel like a genuinely new edition. Key Takeaways Hunter's Mark is not mandatory. Rangers have several competing uses for concentration and bonus actions. Magic Weapon, Elemental Weapon, Guardian of Nature, and subclass abilities may provide more value depending on the build. Accuracy becomes increasingly important. Extra Attack, Crossbow Expert, Sharpshooter, and subclass features reward effects that improve the chance of landing multiple attacks rather than adding modest damage to only one target. The original Beast Master demands too much maintenance. Tyler considers healing feats, defensive buffs, and other resources simply to keep his low-CR companion alive, although the subclass eventually gains respectable features such as Bestial Fury and Share Spells. Gloom Stalker remains extremely powerful. Additional attacks, darkness-based invisibility, Stalker's Flurry, Greater Invisibility, and strong action economy allow the subclass to remain dangerous throughout the ranger's progression. Drakewarden delivers the strongest companion fantasy. Its drake gains mobility, elemental abilities, flight, and a flexible breath weapon without requiring the ranger to build an entire emergency medical system around it. Ranger spells are useful, but spell slots are scarce. Pass Without Trace, Spike Growth, Lightning Arrow, Elemental Weapon, Guardian of Nature, and other options can be excellent, but rangers need to make each limited spell slot count. The late-level class features are underwhelming. Feral Senses has frustrating restrictions, and Foe Slayer offers too little for a level-20 capstone, especially for rangers making numerous attacks every round. Subclass choice dramatically changes the ranger experience. One ranger becomes Batman, another gets an airborne dragon flamethrower, and the third spends sixteen levels inventing increasingly elaborate snake-based healthcare. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
The ranger's journey from level 5 to 20 is a majestic tale of growth, survival, and discovering that Hunter's Mark may not actually deserve permanent custody of your concentration. Randall's Gloom Stalker becomes an invisible crossbow machine, Ash's Drakewarden takes to the skies aboard a fire-breathing murder lizard, and Tyler spends sixteen levels converting every available feat, spell slot, and medical supply into increasingly desperate attempts to keep one flying snake alive. By level 20, two of these characters are legendary hunters. The third is still shouting, "Don't worry, buddy, I have Cure Wounds!" while filling out another pet insurance claim. Show Notes In this episode, we continue building our 2014 DnD 5e rangers, taking Randall's Gloom Stalker, Ash's Drakewarden, and Tyler's original Player's Handbook Beast Master from level 5 all the way to level 20. Extra Attack immediately improves everyone's combat potential, although Tyler is mostly excited because he can finally attack without ordering his flying snake to do it for him. From there, we examine the spells, feats, subclass features, and questionable design decisions that define the ranger's later levels. We also commit ranger heresy by asking whether Hunter's Mark is actually worth using. Magic Weapon offers better accuracy, reliable damage, an hour-long duration, and none of the constant bonus-action reassignment that interferes with Crossbow Expert, companion commands, and other important ranger abilities. As the builds gain more attacks and begin using Sharpshooter, improving the chance to hit becomes increasingly valuable, leaving Hunter's Mark standing in the wilderness wondering why nobody invited it to combat. The three subclasses develop very differently. Randall's Gloom Stalker continues doing Gloom Stalker things, including attacking repeatedly, disappearing into darkness, gaining Greater Invisibility, and generally becoming Batman with a crossbow. Ash's Drakewarden gains elemental damage, a flying companion, and a breath weapon that can turn a battlefield into an aerial geometry problem. Meanwhile, Tyler's Beast Master slowly crawls toward competence, eventually allowing his snake to attack twice and share spells, assuming it survives long enough to enjoy either feature. At the highest levels, the ranger's progression becomes much less exciting. Fifth-level spells offer a few useful options, Feral Senses arrives with awkward limitations, and the class gives players several excellent reasons to multiclass after level 15. The journey concludes with Foe Slayer, a capstone so underwhelming that the group proposes replacing it with a legendary death arrow capable of instantly killing enemies, because a level-20 ranger should receive something more exciting than occasionally adding Wisdom to one attack. Finally, the Question of the Week examines why players reacted differently to the DnD 2024 rules and the Pathfinder 2e Remaster. The discussion explores community expectations, the circumstances behind each revision, compatibility concerns, and the uncomfortable space occupied by an update that changes too much to feel like ordinary 5e but not enough to feel like a genuinely new edition. Key Takeaways Hunter's Mark is not mandatory. Rangers have several competing uses for concentration and bonus actions. Magic Weapon, Elemental Weapon, Guardian of Nature, and subclass abilities may provide more value depending on the build. Accuracy becomes increasingly important. Extra Attack, Crossbow Expert, Sharpshooter, and subclass features reward effects that improve the chance of landing multiple attacks rather than adding modest damage to only one target. The original Beast Master demands too much maintenance. Tyler considers healing feats, defensive buffs, and other resources simply to keep his low-CR companion alive, although the subclass eventually gains respectable features such as Bestial Fury and Share Spells. Gloom Stalker remains extremely powerful. Additional attacks, darkness-based invisibility, Stalker's Flurry, Greater Invisibility, and strong action economy allow the subclass to remain dangerous throughout the ranger's progression. Drakewarden delivers the strongest companion fantasy. Its drake gains mobility, elemental abilities, flight, and a flexible breath weapon without requiring the ranger to build an entire emergency medical system around it. Ranger spells are useful, but spell slots are scarce. Pass Without Trace, Spike Growth, Lightning Arrow, Elemental Weapon, Guardian of Nature, and other options can be excellent, but rangers need to make each limited spell slot count. The late-level class features are underwhelming. Feral Senses has frustrating restrictions, and Foe Slayer offers too little for a level-20 capstone, especially for rangers making numerous attacks every round. Subclass choice dramatically changes the ranger experience. One ranger becomes Batman, another gets an airborne dragon flamethrower, and the third spends sixteen levels inventing increasingly elaborate snake-based healthcare. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Tonight, we're talking vampires, history's greatest transformation from suspiciously bloated corpse to immortal bisexual aristocrat with a castle, a cape, and absolutely no respect for personal boundaries. We dig into garlic, holy symbols, counting mustard seeds, bricks shoved into mouths, and the alarming number of vampire prevention methods involving someone's severed head near their butt. Then we compare D&D's growing collection of bitey hit-point bags with Pathfinder's bold decision to let you turn almost anything into a vampire. Grab a wooden stake, protect your neck, and remember: the undead pyramid scheme is not a scam if every wight gets eight zombies beneath them. Show Notes Vampires have been haunting folklore for centuries, but before they became wealthy, seductive goth icons, they were mostly blamed on misunderstood decomposition, disease, and humanity's long tradition of confidently inventing explanations for things it did not understand. We explore the regional beliefs surrounding vampires, including animal transformations, compulsive counting, invitations, running water, graveyard horse tests, and the creative methods people used to keep corpses from returning. Apparently, garlic was not enough. Sometimes you needed decapitation, holy water, a brick, and a very specific head-placement strategy. From there, we follow the vampire from folklore through The Vampyre and Dracula, then directly into tabletop gaming. Strahd is examined as D&D's legally distinct Dracula, complete with an Eastern European castle, disposable vampire brides, an unpleasant servant, and an unhealthy obsession with one particular woman. We discuss why vampires make such effective villains, whether they should always be irredeemably evil, and how their intelligence, charisma, resources, and ability to escape make them more interesting than another monster waiting patiently to be reduced to zero hit points. Tyler walks through D&D's increasingly crowded vampire bestiary, including vampire spawn, familiars, mind flayers, Nosferatu, infernalists, wardens, spellcasters, warriors, umbral lords, hopping vampires, and several versions of Strahd. Ash discovers that many updated vampires lost their regeneration and responds with the measured restraint everyone has come to expect. We also uncover the Jiangshi's undead pyramid scheme, where drained victims become wights, wights create zombies, and everyone receives an exciting opportunity to become their own boss. Pathfinder 2e takes a more flexible approach with vampire adjustments that can be applied to nearly any living creature. Want a vampire dwarf, vampire monster, full vampire character, Dhampir, or suspiciously blood-focused animal companion? Pathfinder has paperwork for that. We compare its vampire families, weaknesses, regeneration, player archetypes, unusual feeding options, and the many ways players can embrace eternal life without being reduced to a single edgy species choice. Finally, the Question of the Week asks how to deliver a satisfying campaign ending. The hosts discuss final boss battles, player-driven epilogues, heroic sacrifices, closing character arcs, carrying consequences into future campaigns, and giving everyone enough closure to explain what their character does after saving the world. Tyler also recommends a total party kill, because rocks falling remains the most efficient form of narrative finality. Key Takeaways Vampire folklore varied dramatically between regions, but blood drinking, animal transformations, compulsions, returning corpses, and elaborate burial precautions appeared frequently. Many historical vampire scares were fueled by misunderstandings about decomposition, disease, bloating, and blood appearing around a corpse's mouth. Bram Stoker's Dracula established many of the traits associated with modern vampires, including wealth, sophistication, seduction, immortality, and aristocratic menace. Strahd is essentially D&D's version of Dracula, enhanced with wizard abilities, legendary actions, extensive resources, and enough emotional baggage to fill Castle Ravenloft. Vampires make strong recurring villains because they are intelligent, charismatic, difficult to permanently destroy, and capable of retreating to fight another day. D&D offers numerous vampire variants, but several newer designs reduce them to durable biting monsters, and the removal of regeneration makes them feel less distinct. The Jiangshi can create an expanding hierarchy of wights and zombies, producing what can only be described as an undead pyramid scheme. Pathfinder 2e's vampire adjustments allow GMs to apply vampire abilities to existing creatures instead of relying entirely on separate stat blocks. Pathfinder also provides more vampire-related player options, including the Dhampir heritage, vampire archetype, vampiric companions, and blood-draining spells. A satisfying campaign ending should extend beyond defeating the final boss and give players room to resolve relationships, describe their futures, and address the consequences of their choices. Asking characters what they hope to do after the adventure can help the GM build meaningful rewards and bring long-running stories full circle. Heroic sacrifice can create a powerful bittersweet ending when the choice belongs to the player rather than being forced upon them. Plot holes may be forgotten, but players remember when an old joke, promise, relationship, or seemingly insignificant choice returns during the finale. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Tonight, we're talking vampires, history's greatest transformation from suspiciously bloated corpse to immortal bisexual aristocrat with a castle, a cape, and absolutely no respect for personal boundaries. We dig into garlic, holy symbols, counting mustard seeds, bricks shoved into mouths, and the alarming number of vampire prevention methods involving someone's severed head near their butt. Then we compare D&D's growing collection of bitey hit-point bags with Pathfinder's bold decision to let you turn almost anything into a vampire. Grab a wooden stake, protect your neck, and remember: the undead pyramid scheme is not a scam if every wight gets eight zombies beneath them. Show Notes Vampires have been haunting folklore for centuries, but before they became wealthy, seductive goth icons, they were mostly blamed on misunderstood decomposition, disease, and humanity's long tradition of confidently inventing explanations for things it did not understand. We explore the regional beliefs surrounding vampires, including animal transformations, compulsive counting, invitations, running water, graveyard horse tests, and the creative methods people used to keep corpses from returning. Apparently, garlic was not enough. Sometimes you needed decapitation, holy water, a brick, and a very specific head-placement strategy. From there, we follow the vampire from folklore through The Vampyre and Dracula, then directly into tabletop gaming. Strahd is examined as D&D's legally distinct Dracula, complete with an Eastern European castle, disposable vampire brides, an unpleasant servant, and an unhealthy obsession with one particular woman. We discuss why vampires make such effective villains, whether they should always be irredeemably evil, and how their intelligence, charisma, resources, and ability to escape make them more interesting than another monster waiting patiently to be reduced to zero hit points. Tyler walks through D&D's increasingly crowded vampire bestiary, including vampire spawn, familiars, mind flayers, Nosferatu, infernalists, wardens, spellcasters, warriors, umbral lords, hopping vampires, and several versions of Strahd. Ash discovers that many updated vampires lost their regeneration and responds with the measured restraint everyone has come to expect. We also uncover the Jiangshi's undead pyramid scheme, where drained victims become wights, wights create zombies, and everyone receives an exciting opportunity to become their own boss. Pathfinder 2e takes a more flexible approach with vampire adjustments that can be applied to nearly any living creature. Want a vampire dwarf, vampire monster, full vampire character, Dhampir, or suspiciously blood-focused animal companion? Pathfinder has paperwork for that. We compare its vampire families, weaknesses, regeneration, player archetypes, unusual feeding options, and the many ways players can embrace eternal life without being reduced to a single edgy species choice. Finally, the Question of the Week asks how to deliver a satisfying campaign ending. The hosts discuss final boss battles, player-driven epilogues, heroic sacrifices, closing character arcs, carrying consequences into future campaigns, and giving everyone enough closure to explain what their character does after saving the world. Tyler also recommends a total party kill, because rocks falling remains the most efficient form of narrative finality. Key Takeaways Vampire folklore varied dramatically between regions, but blood drinking, animal transformations, compulsions, returning corpses, and elaborate burial precautions appeared frequently. Many historical vampire scares were fueled by misunderstandings about decomposition, disease, bloating, and blood appearing around a corpse's mouth. Bram Stoker's Dracula established many of the traits associated with modern vampires, including wealth, sophistication, seduction, immortality, and aristocratic menace. Strahd is essentially D&D's version of Dracula, enhanced with wizard abilities, legendary actions, extensive resources, and enough emotional baggage to fill Castle Ravenloft. Vampires make strong recurring villains because they are intelligent, charismatic, difficult to permanently destroy, and capable of retreating to fight another day. D&D offers numerous vampire variants, but several newer designs reduce them to durable biting monsters, and the removal of regeneration makes them feel less distinct. The Jiangshi can create an expanding hierarchy of wights and zombies, producing what can only be described as an undead pyramid scheme. Pathfinder 2e's vampire adjustments allow GMs to apply vampire abilities to existing creatures instead of relying entirely on separate stat blocks. Pathfinder also provides more vampire-related player options, including the Dhampir heritage, vampire archetype, vampiric companions, and blood-draining spells. A satisfying campaign ending should extend beyond defeating the final boss and give players room to resolve relationships, describe their futures, and address the consequences of their choices. Asking characters what they hope to do after the adventure can help the GM build meaningful rewards and bring long-running stories full circle. Heroic sacrifice can create a powerful bittersweet ending when the choice belongs to the player rather than being forced upon them. Plot holes may be forgotten, but players remember when an old joke, promise, relationship, or seemingly insignificant choice returns during the finale. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome back to the rest of last year's episodes. Adrian, Alex, and Alex talk about characters, removing players, and Kids on Bikes. Go check out Alex TeaTime on Startplaying.Find [Alex TeaTime][she/he/they]:StartPlaying: https://startplaying.games/gm/alexteatimerpgTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mizuki_makesFind Adrian [he/any]:+TikTok: @ACLawrence24+Youtube: @ACLawrence24+Twitch: @ACLawrence24+Instagram: @AdrianPadrianFind Alex [she/they]:+Instagram: @eloquentmime+TikTok: @eloquentmimeFind Dante [he/him]+Youtube: @TrainerRio +Intagram: @trainer.rio +TikTok: @Trainer.rio +Twitch: @TrainerRioFind Us: +Join our community via Discord: https://discord.gg/XFhma7qjDy+Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/dungeonndegrees +Subscribe to D&Degrees on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dungeons-degrees/id1528189379+Twitch: @dungeonndegrees | twitch.tv/dungeonndegrees+Twitter: @dungeonndegrees+TikTok: @dungeonndegrees+Instagram: @dungeonndegrees +Our Website: https://dndegreespod.com/ +Email us at dndegreespod@gmail.com+Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@dungeonsdegrees
Welcome to Ranger levels 1 through 4, where you can become a deadly shadow archer, command your own miniature dragon, or sacrifice your entire action so that a flying snake with the structural integrity of wet parchment can participate in combat. In this episode, we explore Favored Enemies nobody tracks, terrain nobody visits, spells competing for the same concentration slot, and the revolutionary discovery that the Ranger becomes significantly better when you replace most of the Ranger. Grab your longbow, release your drake, and prepare to whisper, "Go get 'em, little buddy," moments before your animal companion is killed by incidental damage. Show Notes The Ranger has spent years carrying a terrible reputation, but is the entire class actually bad, or did everyone read the original Beast Master, experience psychic damage, and refuse to look at the class again? In this episode, we begin our journey through the 2014 Ranger from levels 1 through 4. We break down the class's ability scores, armor, weapons, skills, Fighting Styles, spellcasting, and its awkward position somewhere between Fighter, Rogue, and person who remembers to bring enough trail rations. We examine the original Favored Enemy and Natural Explorer features, which are extremely useful when the campaign takes place in one specific biome against one specific enemy and the DM insists that every mile of travel be handled in real time. Then we look at Tasha's optional features, including Favored Foe and Deft Explorer, which give Rangers abilities they might actually use during an adventure. At level 3, the builds split dramatically. Randall embraces the darkness with a Gloom Stalker built around stealth, hand crossbows, and making an alarming number of attacks before the enemy understands that combat has started. Ash chooses the Drakewarden, gaining a durable dragon companion that can attack, support allies, and generally behave like a functional subclass feature. Tyler, meanwhile, voluntarily builds the original Player's Handbook Beast Master. Armed with determination, optimism, and a flying snake that can be eliminated by an aggressively closed door, he attempts to prove that the subclass can work. It technically can, provided your definition of working includes surrendering your action, protecting your pet at all costs, and carrying its body around until the DM allows you to find another one. By level 4, the difference is impossible to ignore. The Gloom Stalker is attacking repeatedly from the shadows, the Drakewarden is firing arrows while a dragon controls the front line, and the Beast Master is pointing toward the enemy and asking his snake to please do something useful. Two Rangers are ready for the next tier of play. One Ranger needs to lie down. Key Takeaways Dexterity is usually the Ranger's best primary ability. It supports ranged and finesse weapons, Armor Class, initiative, Stealth, and several important saving throws without demanding the impossible ability spread required by most Strength builds. The original level-one features are painfully campaign-dependent. Favored Enemy mostly helps with tracking and recalling information, while Natural Explorer becomes relevant only when the party is traveling through the terrain you selected. Tasha's optional features are major improvements. Favored Foe provides extra damage without consuming a bonus action, while Deft Explorer gives the Ranger expertise in a chosen skill and helps it better occupy the party's scout role. Bonus-action management matters. Hunter's Mark, two-weapon fighting, Crossbow Expert, and companion commands can all compete for the same bonus action, so your build needs a clear plan for how its turns will work. Archery remains an excellent Fighting Style. The attack bonus is reliable, useful at every level, and especially valuable for builds planning to use powerful ranged feats later. Ranger spells should provide more than damage. Healing, control, mobility, and utility can offer better value than repeatedly concentrating on Hunter's Mark, especially when Favored Foe can handle shorter fights. Most Ranger subclasses are functional or strong. Gloom Stalker offers excellent opening-round offense, Drakewarden delivers an effective companion, and even Hunter remains playable. The original Beast Master is the feature responsible for much of the class's terrible reputation. The original Beast Master has a brutal action economy. Commanding the companion to attack consumes the Ranger's action, leaving the character watching their pet play D&D on their behalf. Modern companion subclasses demonstrate what Beast Master should have been. The Drake can act through a bonus action, contribute extra damage with its reaction, support the front line, and survive encounters without requiring constant emotional and medical supervision. Your build should have a recognizable combat loop by level 4. Randall attacks rapidly from hiding, Ash fires from range while the Drake fights up front, and Tyler commands a snake while quietly reconsidering every decision that brought him here. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome to Ranger levels 1 through 4, where you can become a deadly shadow archer, command your own miniature dragon, or sacrifice your entire action so that a flying snake with the structural integrity of wet parchment can participate in combat. In this episode, we explore Favored Enemies nobody tracks, terrain nobody visits, spells competing for the same concentration slot, and the revolutionary discovery that the Ranger becomes significantly better when you replace most of the Ranger. Grab your longbow, release your drake, and prepare to whisper, "Go get 'em, little buddy," moments before your animal companion is killed by incidental damage. Show Notes The Ranger has spent years carrying a terrible reputation, but is the entire class actually bad, or did everyone read the original Beast Master, experience psychic damage, and refuse to look at the class again? In this episode, we begin our journey through the 2014 Ranger from levels 1 through 4. We break down the class's ability scores, armor, weapons, skills, Fighting Styles, spellcasting, and its awkward position somewhere between Fighter, Rogue, and person who remembers to bring enough trail rations. We examine the original Favored Enemy and Natural Explorer features, which are extremely useful when the campaign takes place in one specific biome against one specific enemy and the DM insists that every mile of travel be handled in real time. Then we look at Tasha's optional features, including Favored Foe and Deft Explorer, which give Rangers abilities they might actually use during an adventure. At level 3, the builds split dramatically. Randall embraces the darkness with a Gloom Stalker built around stealth, hand crossbows, and making an alarming number of attacks before the enemy understands that combat has started. Ash chooses the Drakewarden, gaining a durable dragon companion that can attack, support allies, and generally behave like a functional subclass feature. Tyler, meanwhile, voluntarily builds the original Player's Handbook Beast Master. Armed with determination, optimism, and a flying snake that can be eliminated by an aggressively closed door, he attempts to prove that the subclass can work. It technically can, provided your definition of working includes surrendering your action, protecting your pet at all costs, and carrying its body around until the DM allows you to find another one. By level 4, the difference is impossible to ignore. The Gloom Stalker is attacking repeatedly from the shadows, the Drakewarden is firing arrows while a dragon controls the front line, and the Beast Master is pointing toward the enemy and asking his snake to please do something useful. Two Rangers are ready for the next tier of play. One Ranger needs to lie down. Key Takeaways Dexterity is usually the Ranger's best primary ability. It supports ranged and finesse weapons, Armor Class, initiative, Stealth, and several important saving throws without demanding the impossible ability spread required by most Strength builds. The original level-one features are painfully campaign-dependent. Favored Enemy mostly helps with tracking and recalling information, while Natural Explorer becomes relevant only when the party is traveling through the terrain you selected. Tasha's optional features are major improvements. Favored Foe provides extra damage without consuming a bonus action, while Deft Explorer gives the Ranger expertise in a chosen skill and helps it better occupy the party's scout role. Bonus-action management matters. Hunter's Mark, two-weapon fighting, Crossbow Expert, and companion commands can all compete for the same bonus action, so your build needs a clear plan for how its turns will work. Archery remains an excellent Fighting Style. The attack bonus is reliable, useful at every level, and especially valuable for builds planning to use powerful ranged feats later. Ranger spells should provide more than damage. Healing, control, mobility, and utility can offer better value than repeatedly concentrating on Hunter's Mark, especially when Favored Foe can handle shorter fights. Most Ranger subclasses are functional or strong. Gloom Stalker offers excellent opening-round offense, Drakewarden delivers an effective companion, and even Hunter remains playable. The original Beast Master is the feature responsible for much of the class's terrible reputation. The original Beast Master has a brutal action economy. Commanding the companion to attack consumes the Ranger's action, leaving the character watching their pet play D&D on their behalf. Modern companion subclasses demonstrate what Beast Master should have been. The Drake can act through a bonus action, contribute extra damage with its reaction, support the front line, and survive encounters without requiring constant emotional and medical supervision. Your build should have a recognizable combat loop by level 4. Randall attacks rapidly from hiding, Ash fires from range while the Drake fights up front, and Tyler commands a snake while quietly reconsidering every decision that brought him here. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Wizards of the Coast has revealed its plans for the future of Dungeons & Dragons, and apparently the strategy is simple: fix D&D Beyond, return to Gen Con, outsource adventures to people who know what they are doing, cross over with World of Warcraft, and traumatize a convention hall full of children with a Dark Sun trailer featuring a freshly removed spine. Tyler attended the secret briefing and emerged with five pages of notes, several enormous announcements, and absolutely no idea what D&D Icons are. So prepare yourselves for new books, old settings, digital upgrades, live puppies, and enough upcoming content to make your wallet roll a death save. EnWorld: President of WotC Steps Down Forbidden Lands (affiliate link) Show Notes Wizards of the Coast has revealed its roadmap for Dungeons & Dragons through 2027, and Tyler is here to unload everything he learned during an embargoed presentation. We begin at Gen Con, which Wizards plans to turn into the recurring home for its annual D&D announcements. There will be a massive convention presence, live events, streams, adoptable puppies, and something called D&D Icons. Everyone involved seems extremely excited about Icons. Unfortunately, nobody appears capable of explaining what they actually are. D&D Beyond is also getting a substantial overhaul. Wizards plans to introduce tools for finding groups, allow local game stores to advertise events, and form an official partnership with StartPlaying. The mobile app is being redesigned, the character builder and rules engine are being rebuilt, and new DM tools, improved search, and campaign-creation features are somewhere on the horizon. Several details remain vague, partly because the presentation's prerecorded D&D Beyond video stopped working halfway through. Technology! On the video game side, Wizards appears to be pulling back from its plan to release a major game every year. Several projects have reportedly been canceled, but Warlock and Exodus remain in development. Warlock will feature a protagonist whose patron is Tasha, while Exodus is shaping up as a science-fiction RPG with strong Mass Effect energy and a tabletop tie-in that nobody on the podcast entirely understands. The tabletop schedule begins with Arcana Unleashed, a large rules expansion containing eight subclasses, ten backgrounds, twenty-nine feats, thirty-three spells, group patrons, magical factions, forty-seven magic items, and nineteen creature stat blocks. It will also introduce evolving magic items that can grow alongside the characters using them. Its companion campaign, Deadfall, is an espionage-focused adventure running from levels 11 through 20. The characters must save Thay by opposing Szass Tam, which means the situation has become so dire that saving Thay somehow qualifies as the good outcome. The Season of Champions brings a full Dungeons & Dragons crossover with World of Warcraft. The book is being led by longtime D&D designer and Warcraft fan James Wyatt and will include eleven species, six subclasses, iconic locations, recognizable characters, dungeons, monsters designed to provide a raid-like experience, a DM screen, and a map pack with a digital adventure. It will also come in three different editions, allowing Horde and Alliance fans to continue fighting the most important battle of all: which logo belongs on the front of the book. Then comes Dark Sun. Wizards is presenting Athas as the first mature D&D setting, complete with shrink-wrapped books, content warnings, extreme violence, and a trailer that apparently wastes no time separating people from their spinal columns. Dark Sun will receive separate setting and gameplay expansions, a limited-edition Player's Handbook, a new Scion class, a DM screen, maps, and some form of adventure support. The gameplay material alone is expected to approach five hundred pages, suggesting that Wizards is not returning to Athas quietly. Greyhawk will also return during the 2027 Season of Sword and Sorcery. Crown of the Witch Queen is a 160-page adventure featuring Tasha's daughter as its central antagonist, supported by a map pack and DM screen. The final 2027 season, the Season of Rebellion, was announced without details, leaving everyone to speculate angrily until Wizards decides to explain itself. Perhaps the largest long-term change is Wizards' plan for annual setting support produced in partnership with established third-party publishers. Ghostfire Gaming will work on Ravenloft, Visionary Products and Designs will handle Eberron, and Kobold Press will support the Forgotten Realms. Wizards is also developing something with the Hickmans, although details remain scarce. The approach could finally give neglected settings regular adventures and character options, but it also raises questions about outsourcing, quality control, digital-only releases, and whether D&D is about to recreate the overwhelming flood of material from the third-edition era. Despite those concerns, the group is cautiously optimistic. Wizards seems willing to experiment, work with proven creators, support more settings, focus on tabletop products, and admit that maybe trying to become a video game company was not the best use of everyone's time. It could produce an exciting new era for D&D, or it could become an exhausting avalanche of crossovers and subscription content. Either way, Ash will be waiting for the D&D and Family Guy campaign setting so they can finally say they warned us. Key Takeaways Gen Con is becoming D&D's annual announcement hub. Wizards intends to reveal future product roadmaps there instead of relying on scattered online presentations. D&D Beyond is being extensively rebuilt. Planned improvements include group-finding tools, local game-store listings, StartPlaying integration, a redesigned app, a new character builder, a new rules engine, better search, DM tools, and campaign creation. Arcana Unleashed is a major player-focused expansion. It includes subclasses, feats, spells, backgrounds, factions, patrons, dozens of magic items, and new rules for items that evolve with their owners. Deadfall finally supports high-level campaigning. The adventure runs from levels 11 through 20 and sends the party into an espionage conflict against Szass Tam in Thay. The World of Warcraft crossover is a full product line. It includes numerous playable species, subclasses, famous locations, raid-inspired encounters, accessories, digital content, and three different cover editions. Dark Sun is returning without being noticeably softened. Wizards is positioning it as a mature setting with separate lore and gameplay books, graphic content warnings, hundreds of pages of material, and promised adventure support. Greyhawk returns with Crown of the Witch Queen. The adventure will feature Tasha's daughter as the antagonist and lean into a colorful, operatic sword-and-sorcery style. Classic settings may receive annual support. Wizards is partnering with experienced publishers to produce new Ravenloft, Eberron, and Forgotten Realms material, with another Hickman-related project also in development. Third-party partnerships could solve D&D's setting problem. Instead of leaving worlds unsupported for years, specialized publishers can create material while Wizards focuses on core rules and major releases. The biggest risk is content overload. More books, digital releases, partnerships, settings, and crossovers could strengthen the game, but they could also recreate the crowded and difficult-to-navigate release schedule of earlier editions. The overall mood is cautiously optimistic. The announcements suggest that Wizards is taking creative risks, investing in tabletop content, and making decisions that could benefit both players and the wider TTRPG industry. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia https://ashelydm.com/ https://ashelydm.com/ Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Wizards of the Coast has revealed its plans for the future of Dungeons & Dragons, and apparently the strategy is simple: fix D&D Beyond, return to Gen Con, outsource adventures to people who know what they are doing, cross over with World of Warcraft, and traumatize a convention hall full of children with a Dark Sun trailer featuring a freshly removed spine. Tyler attended the secret briefing and emerged with five pages of notes, several enormous announcements, and absolutely no idea what D&D Icons are. So prepare yourselves for new books, old settings, digital upgrades, live puppies, and enough upcoming content to make your wallet roll a death save. EnWorld: President of WotC Steps Down Forbidden Lands (affiliate link) Show Notes Wizards of the Coast has revealed its roadmap for Dungeons & Dragons through 2027, and Tyler is here to unload everything he learned during an embargoed presentation. We begin at Gen Con, which Wizards plans to turn into the recurring home for its annual D&D announcements. There will be a massive convention presence, live events, streams, adoptable puppies, and something called D&D Icons. Everyone involved seems extremely excited about Icons. Unfortunately, nobody appears capable of explaining what they actually are. D&D Beyond is also getting a substantial overhaul. Wizards plans to introduce tools for finding groups, allow local game stores to advertise events, and form an official partnership with StartPlaying. The mobile app is being redesigned, the character builder and rules engine are being rebuilt, and new DM tools, improved search, and campaign-creation features are somewhere on the horizon. Several details remain vague, partly because the presentation's prerecorded D&D Beyond video stopped working halfway through. Technology! On the video game side, Wizards appears to be pulling back from its plan to release a major game every year. Several projects have reportedly been canceled, but Warlock and Exodus remain in development. Warlock will feature a protagonist whose patron is Tasha, while Exodus is shaping up as a science-fiction RPG with strong Mass Effect energy and a tabletop tie-in that nobody on the podcast entirely understands. The tabletop schedule begins with Arcana Unleashed, a large rules expansion containing eight subclasses, ten backgrounds, twenty-nine feats, thirty-three spells, group patrons, magical factions, forty-seven magic items, and nineteen creature stat blocks. It will also introduce evolving magic items that can grow alongside the characters using them. Its companion campaign, Deadfall, is an espionage-focused adventure running from levels 11 through 20. The characters must save Thay by opposing Szass Tam, which means the situation has become so dire that saving Thay somehow qualifies as the good outcome. The Season of Champions brings a full Dungeons & Dragons crossover with World of Warcraft. The book is being led by longtime D&D designer and Warcraft fan James Wyatt and will include eleven species, six subclasses, iconic locations, recognizable characters, dungeons, monsters designed to provide a raid-like experience, a DM screen, and a map pack with a digital adventure. It will also come in three different editions, allowing Horde and Alliance fans to continue fighting the most important battle of all: which logo belongs on the front of the book. Then comes Dark Sun. Wizards is presenting Athas as the first mature D&D setting, complete with shrink-wrapped books, content warnings, extreme violence, and a trailer that apparently wastes no time separating people from their spinal columns. Dark Sun will receive separate setting and gameplay expansions, a limited-edition Player's Handbook, a new Scion class, a DM screen, maps, and some form of adventure support. The gameplay material alone is expected to approach five hundred pages, suggesting that Wizards is not returning to Athas quietly. Greyhawk will also return during the 2027 Season of Sword and Sorcery. Crown of the Witch Queen is a 160-page adventure featuring Tasha's daughter as its central antagonist, supported by a map pack and DM screen. The final 2027 season, the Season of Rebellion, was announced without details, leaving everyone to speculate angrily until Wizards decides to explain itself. Perhaps the largest long-term change is Wizards' plan for annual setting support produced in partnership with established third-party publishers. Ghostfire Gaming will work on Ravenloft, Visionary Products and Designs will handle Eberron, and Kobold Press will support the Forgotten Realms. Wizards is also developing something with the Hickmans, although details remain scarce. The approach could finally give neglected settings regular adventures and character options, but it also raises questions about outsourcing, quality control, digital-only releases, and whether D&D is about to recreate the overwhelming flood of material from the third-edition era. Despite those concerns, the group is cautiously optimistic. Wizards seems willing to experiment, work with proven creators, support more settings, focus on tabletop products, and admit that maybe trying to become a video game company was not the best use of everyone's time. It could produce an exciting new era for D&D, or it could become an exhausting avalanche of crossovers and subscription content. Either way, Ash will be waiting for the D&D and Family Guy campaign setting so they can finally say they warned us. Key Takeaways Gen Con is becoming D&D's annual announcement hub. Wizards intends to reveal future product roadmaps there instead of relying on scattered online presentations. D&D Beyond is being extensively rebuilt. Planned improvements include group-finding tools, local game-store listings, StartPlaying integration, a redesigned app, a new character builder, a new rules engine, better search, DM tools, and campaign creation. Arcana Unleashed is a major player-focused expansion. It includes subclasses, feats, spells, backgrounds, factions, patrons, dozens of magic items, and new rules for items that evolve with their owners. Deadfall finally supports high-level campaigning. The adventure runs from levels 11 through 20 and sends the party into an espionage conflict against Szass Tam in Thay. The World of Warcraft crossover is a full product line. It includes numerous playable species, subclasses, famous locations, raid-inspired encounters, accessories, digital content, and three different cover editions. Dark Sun is returning without being noticeably softened. Wizards is positioning it as a mature setting with separate lore and gameplay books, graphic content warnings, hundreds of pages of material, and promised adventure support. Greyhawk returns with Crown of the Witch Queen. The adventure will feature Tasha's daughter as the antagonist and lean into a colorful, operatic sword-and-sorcery style. Classic settings may receive annual support. Wizards is partnering with experienced publishers to produce new Ravenloft, Eberron, and Forgotten Realms material, with another Hickman-related project also in development. Third-party partnerships could solve D&D's setting problem. Instead of leaving worlds unsupported for years, specialized publishers can create material while Wizards focuses on core rules and major releases. The biggest risk is content overload. More books, digital releases, partnerships, settings, and crossovers could strengthen the game, but they could also recreate the crowded and difficult-to-navigate release schedule of earlier editions. The overall mood is cautiously optimistic. The announcements suggest that Wizards is taking creative risks, investing in tabletop content, and making decisions that could benefit both players and the wider TTRPG industry. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia https://ashelydm.com/ https://ashelydm.com/ Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome to Night City, chooms, where the sky is red, the rent is due, your landlord is probably armed, and health care arrives by helicopter only if your credit score has a body count. In this episode, Ash introduces Randall and Tyler to Cyberpunk Red, a game about surviving late-stage capitalism after it bought a katana, installed cyberlegs, and decided empathy was bad for quarterly growth. The internet is dead, the new internet is haunted, corporations have private armies, your apartment is a cargo container, and if you get shot badly enough, your best hope is that Trauma Team thinks your subscription tier is worth the bullets. So chrome up, talk before you glock, and remember: in Cyberpunk, the future is not here to save you. It is here to invoice you. Cyberpunk: RED Core Rulebook (affiliate link) Show Notes This RPGBOT.Podcast Quickstart kicks off our Cyberpunk Red arc, with Ash taking the GM chair and immediately shoving Randall and Tyler into a glittering corporate hellscape where every system has failed except capitalism, which unfortunately got promoted. This is the concepts and themes episode, so before anyone gets to build a tragic little neon goblin with a gun, Ash walks us through the setting, the history, the tone, and the important survival lesson that being cool does not make you bulletproof. The episode starts in peak RPGBOT fashion: no one is ready, Producer Dan scares the cast, Evil RPGBOT becomes a conspiracy board, and the crew somehow detours through Taylor Swift, soccer, the metric system, and America's inability to understand that a third of a pound is bigger than a quarter. Eventually, because someone has to be the adult and it sure is not going to be capitalism, Ash drags everyone into Cyberpunk Red. Cyberpunk Red takes place in 2045, during the Time of Red, after the Fourth Corporate War and the pocket-nuke-sized corporate tantrum that helped turn Night City into a smoldering lesson in why companies should not have militaries. The old Net is gone, rogue AIs lurk behind the Black Wall, and the new Net is a bunch of local data structures that Netrunners have to physically approach because apparently even hacking needed to become a contact sport. Mechanically, the game runs on D10 checks and D6 damage, which sounds friendly right up until someone explains combat. Fights are fast, violent, and deeply uninterested in your character arc. Armor helps until it gets chewed apart. Critical injuries can cost you limbs, senses, or dignity. Death saves are less a dramatic countdown and more a paperwork-light way of saying congratulations, you lived long enough to regret this. Ash also digs into Netrunning, Black ICE, cyberware, humanity loss, and cyberpsychosis. Netrunners are basically hackers with a death wish and a brain cable. Black ICE is corporate malware that wants to delete either your programs or your thoughts. Cyberware lets you replace your sad meat parts with upgrades, but too much chrome can eat away at your humanity until you become less person and more violent product recall. By the end, Cyberpunk Red comes across as stylish, brutal, roleplay-heavy, and aggressively allergic to the idea that anyone is having a good time for free. It is a game about survival, reputation, scarcity, and looking incredible while the world collapses around you. Next up: character creation, where Tyler will almost certainly try to become some kind of cyber-wizard trash gremlin and everyone will pretend to be surprised. Key Takeaways Cyberpunk Red is set in 2045 during the Time of Red, which is what happens when the future catches fire and nobody with money feels personally inconvenienced enough to fix it. The setting is corporate dystopia with the safety rails removed. Governments are weak, corporations are terrifying, and basic human needs have been turned into subscription models with worse customer service. The old Net is dead because a vengeful hacker released digital nightmares into the system. Now the Black Wall keeps the murder-AIs in the internet basement, where they are definitely fine and nothing bad will ever happen. The new Net is localized, which means Netrunners have to get physically close to access points. Hacking is no longer safely done from your couch. Now it comes with floor plans and gunfire. The core system is simple: roll a D10, add your stat and skill, and try to beat the difficulty. The consequences, however, are very committed to ruining your evening. Combat is deadly, fast, and rude. Armor degrades, bullets hurt, and the game strongly encourages the sacred cyberpunk tradition of not starting a gunfight unless you are ready to become street decor. Critical injuries are nasty. Cyberpunk Red does not ask whether you are emotionally attached to your arm before it starts making suggestions. Trauma Team can save you, but only if you can afford the good plan. In Night City, even emergency rescue has premium tiers, because of course it does. Netrunners are terrifying little brain-goblins who can hack systems, fight programs, and potentially ruin someone's cyberware from the inside. They are cool, useful, and absolutely one bad roll away from becoming soup. Cyberware is powerful and stylish, but it has a humanity cost. Replace too much of yourself and the game starts asking whether you are still a person or just a problem with optics. Cyberpsychosis is not just a punishment for wanting cool robot arms. The episode points out that the game treats medical prosthetics and elective combat chrome differently, which gives the system more nuance than just metal parts make you evil. Cyberpunk Red is roleplay-forward. Rent, lifestyle, jobs, reputation, hustle, and survival all matter. You are not just adventuring. You are trying to make it to next month without being evicted, harvested, hacked, shot, or monetized. The next episode moves into character creation using the Edgerunner method, because apparently everyone agreed that dying in Night City should at least be efficient. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome to Night City, chooms, where the sky is red, the rent is due, your landlord is probably armed, and health care arrives by helicopter only if your credit score has a body count. In this episode, Ash introduces Randall and Tyler to Cyberpunk Red, a game about surviving late-stage capitalism after it bought a katana, installed cyberlegs, and decided empathy was bad for quarterly growth. The internet is dead, the new internet is haunted, corporations have private armies, your apartment is a cargo container, and if you get shot badly enough, your best hope is that Trauma Team thinks your subscription tier is worth the bullets. So chrome up, talk before you glock, and remember: in Cyberpunk, the future is not here to save you. It is here to invoice you. Cyberpunk: RED Core Rulebook (affiliate link) Show Notes This RPGBOT.Podcast Quickstart kicks off our Cyberpunk Red arc, with Ash taking the GM chair and immediately shoving Randall and Tyler into a glittering corporate hellscape where every system has failed except capitalism, which unfortunately got promoted. This is the concepts and themes episode, so before anyone gets to build a tragic little neon goblin with a gun, Ash walks us through the setting, the history, the tone, and the important survival lesson that being cool does not make you bulletproof. The episode starts in peak RPGBOT fashion: no one is ready, Producer Dan scares the cast, Evil RPGBOT becomes a conspiracy board, and the crew somehow detours through Taylor Swift, soccer, the metric system, and America's inability to understand that a third of a pound is bigger than a quarter. Eventually, because someone has to be the adult and it sure is not going to be capitalism, Ash drags everyone into Cyberpunk Red. Cyberpunk Red takes place in 2045, during the Time of Red, after the Fourth Corporate War and the pocket-nuke-sized corporate tantrum that helped turn Night City into a smoldering lesson in why companies should not have militaries. The old Net is gone, rogue AIs lurk behind the Black Wall, and the new Net is a bunch of local data structures that Netrunners have to physically approach because apparently even hacking needed to become a contact sport. Mechanically, the game runs on D10 checks and D6 damage, which sounds friendly right up until someone explains combat. Fights are fast, violent, and deeply uninterested in your character arc. Armor helps until it gets chewed apart. Critical injuries can cost you limbs, senses, or dignity. Death saves are less a dramatic countdown and more a paperwork-light way of saying congratulations, you lived long enough to regret this. Ash also digs into Netrunning, Black ICE, cyberware, humanity loss, and cyberpsychosis. Netrunners are basically hackers with a death wish and a brain cable. Black ICE is corporate malware that wants to delete either your programs or your thoughts. Cyberware lets you replace your sad meat parts with upgrades, but too much chrome can eat away at your humanity until you become less person and more violent product recall. By the end, Cyberpunk Red comes across as stylish, brutal, roleplay-heavy, and aggressively allergic to the idea that anyone is having a good time for free. It is a game about survival, reputation, scarcity, and looking incredible while the world collapses around you. Next up: character creation, where Tyler will almost certainly try to become some kind of cyber-wizard trash gremlin and everyone will pretend to be surprised. Key Takeaways Cyberpunk Red is set in 2045 during the Time of Red, which is what happens when the future catches fire and nobody with money feels personally inconvenienced enough to fix it. The setting is corporate dystopia with the safety rails removed. Governments are weak, corporations are terrifying, and basic human needs have been turned into subscription models with worse customer service. The old Net is dead because a vengeful hacker released digital nightmares into the system. Now the Black Wall keeps the murder-AIs in the internet basement, where they are definitely fine and nothing bad will ever happen. The new Net is localized, which means Netrunners have to get physically close to access points. Hacking is no longer safely done from your couch. Now it comes with floor plans and gunfire. The core system is simple: roll a D10, add your stat and skill, and try to beat the difficulty. The consequences, however, are very committed to ruining your evening. Combat is deadly, fast, and rude. Armor degrades, bullets hurt, and the game strongly encourages the sacred cyberpunk tradition of not starting a gunfight unless you are ready to become street decor. Critical injuries are nasty. Cyberpunk Red does not ask whether you are emotionally attached to your arm before it starts making suggestions. Trauma Team can save you, but only if you can afford the good plan. In Night City, even emergency rescue has premium tiers, because of course it does. Netrunners are terrifying little brain-goblins who can hack systems, fight programs, and potentially ruin someone's cyberware from the inside. They are cool, useful, and absolutely one bad roll away from becoming soup. Cyberware is powerful and stylish, but it has a humanity cost. Replace too much of yourself and the game starts asking whether you are still a person or just a problem with optics. Cyberpsychosis is not just a punishment for wanting cool robot arms. The episode points out that the game treats medical prosthetics and elective combat chrome differently, which gives the system more nuance than just metal parts make you evil. Cyberpunk Red is roleplay-forward. Rent, lifestyle, jobs, reputation, hustle, and survival all matter. You are not just adventuring. You are trying to make it to next month without being evicted, harvested, hacked, shot, or monetized. The next episode moves into character creation using the Edgerunner method, because apparently everyone agreed that dying in Night City should at least be efficient. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome to Pandemonium, the plane where the wind screams, gravity is a rumor, and every emergency exit has a reasonable chance of dropping you directly into the Abyss. Tyler explains the cosmology, Randall attempts to locate something resembling a usable map, Ash discovers that the wind is made from every scream anyone has ever screamed, and Producer Dan quietly realizes this entire episode will require aggressive noise reduction. Pack darkvision, ear protection, and a backup character. The weather is hostile, the architecture hates you, and even the demons would rather be somewhere else. Show Notes This week on the RPGBOT.Podcast, we descend into Pandemonium, the endlessly dark maze of caves where hurricane-force winds carry ancient voices, communication is nearly impossible, and prolonged exposure can leave travelers deaf, insane, or both. The crew explores the plane's four layers, from the enormous caverns of Pandesmos to the narrowing tunnels of Cocytus, the marginally more gravity-compliant Phlegethon, and the sealed chambers of Agathion, where forgotten horrors wait patiently for some adventurer with a shovel and poor judgment. Along the way, we examine Pandemonium's strange inhabitants, exiled gods, nihilistic settlements, bizarre monsters, and oddly specific afterlives. We also follow the River Styx, investigate portals that treat destinations as optional suggestions, and discover a magical shouting spot that lets you insult someone anywhere in the multiverse, provided invisible shadow demons do not eat you first. Finally, the episode turns to using spells against player characters. The hosts discuss why illusion magic becomes terrifying in the hands of a villain, how Pass Without Trace can transform ordinary goblins into a tactical nightmare, and why Dungeon Masters should give enemy spellcasters clever strategies without simply making the players miserable. RPGBOT.Podcast Episodes The Abyss Arborea Archeron Arcadia The Beastlands Bytopia Carceri Celestia Elysium The Ethereal Plane The Feywild Gehenna Hades Hell Part 1 Hell Part 2 Limbo Mechanus Pandemonium Plane of Air Plane of Fire Shadowfell Key Takeaways Pandemonium is an environmental threat before combat even begins. Darkness, deafening winds, madness, and unpredictable gravity can challenge a party without requiring constant monster encounters. The plane contains four layers: Pandesmos, Cocytus, Phlegethon, and Agathion. Each becomes more difficult to navigate, survive, or pronounce. The wind does more than make noise. It carries voices, screams, threats, and other sounds from across history, creating an endless supernatural chorus capable of destroying a traveler's sanity. Navigation is nearly impossible when characters can walk along cave walls and ceilings and rivers can flow in whatever direction they feel like flowing. Most of Pandemonium's inhabitants are exiles, prisoners, refugees, or creatures that arrived accidentally and cannot leave. Nobody appears to have moved there because of the excellent schools. Agathion's sealed pockets make excellent prisons, vaults, and adventure locations for ancient beings that absolutely should not be awakened. The River Styx and Pandemonium's portals provide possible escape routes, but memory loss, random destinations, and ambush predators make every option terrible in a different way. Pandemonium works best when the plane itself feels like the primary antagonist. The monsters should be additional complications, not the only source of danger. Enemy illusionists can create memorable encounters, but Dungeon Masters should apply the same standards to NPC illusions that they apply to player illusions. Smart enemies using stealth, terrain, traps, and spells such as Pass Without Trace can turn supposedly weak creatures into serious threats without artificially increasing their statistics. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome to Pandemonium, the plane where the wind screams, gravity is a rumor, and every emergency exit has a reasonable chance of dropping you directly into the Abyss. Tyler explains the cosmology, Randall attempts to locate something resembling a usable map, Ash discovers that the wind is made from every scream anyone has ever screamed, and Producer Dan quietly realizes this entire episode will require aggressive noise reduction. Pack darkvision, ear protection, and a backup character. The weather is hostile, the architecture hates you, and even the demons would rather be somewhere else. Show Notes This week on the RPGBOT.Podcast, we descend into Pandemonium, the endlessly dark maze of caves where hurricane-force winds carry ancient voices, communication is nearly impossible, and prolonged exposure can leave travelers deaf, insane, or both. The crew explores the plane's four layers, from the enormous caverns of Pandesmos to the narrowing tunnels of Cocytus, the marginally more gravity-compliant Phlegethon, and the sealed chambers of Agathion, where forgotten horrors wait patiently for some adventurer with a shovel and poor judgment. Along the way, we examine Pandemonium's strange inhabitants, exiled gods, nihilistic settlements, bizarre monsters, and oddly specific afterlives. We also follow the River Styx, investigate portals that treat destinations as optional suggestions, and discover a magical shouting spot that lets you insult someone anywhere in the multiverse, provided invisible shadow demons do not eat you first. Finally, the episode turns to using spells against player characters. The hosts discuss why illusion magic becomes terrifying in the hands of a villain, how Pass Without Trace can transform ordinary goblins into a tactical nightmare, and why Dungeon Masters should give enemy spellcasters clever strategies without simply making the players miserable. RPGBOT.Podcast Episodes The Abyss Arborea Archeron Arcadia The Beastlands Bytopia Carceri Celestia Elysium The Ethereal Plane The Feywild Gehenna Hades Hell Part 1 Hell Part 2 Limbo Mechanus Pandemonium Plane of Air Plane of Fire Shadowfell Key Takeaways Pandemonium is an environmental threat before combat even begins. Darkness, deafening winds, madness, and unpredictable gravity can challenge a party without requiring constant monster encounters. The plane contains four layers: Pandesmos, Cocytus, Phlegethon, and Agathion. Each becomes more difficult to navigate, survive, or pronounce. The wind does more than make noise. It carries voices, screams, threats, and other sounds from across history, creating an endless supernatural chorus capable of destroying a traveler's sanity. Navigation is nearly impossible when characters can walk along cave walls and ceilings and rivers can flow in whatever direction they feel like flowing. Most of Pandemonium's inhabitants are exiles, prisoners, refugees, or creatures that arrived accidentally and cannot leave. Nobody appears to have moved there because of the excellent schools. Agathion's sealed pockets make excellent prisons, vaults, and adventure locations for ancient beings that absolutely should not be awakened. The River Styx and Pandemonium's portals provide possible escape routes, but memory loss, random destinations, and ambush predators make every option terrible in a different way. Pandemonium works best when the plane itself feels like the primary antagonist. The monsters should be additional complications, not the only source of danger. Enemy illusionists can create memorable encounters, but Dungeon Masters should apply the same standards to NPC illusions that they apply to player illusions. Smart enemies using stealth, terrain, traps, and spells such as Pass Without Trace can turn supposedly weak creatures into serious threats without artificially increasing their statistics. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Tonight, the RPGBOT.Podcast enters the discourse arena, where Paizo is financially bleeding, Archives of Nethys accidentally brought a flamethrower to a contract negotiation, and the internet has already decided who the villain is without reading past the headline. Ash arrives with enough hot takes to melt adamantine, Tyler desperately attempts to preserve nuance, and Randall keeps feeding increasingly tortured metaphors into the Wayback Machine. Grab your popcorn, silence your notifications, and remember: the rules are still free. Everyone can please stop screaming now. UPDATE: Joint announcement from Paizo+AoN on Juy 24th Links Impossible Magic on paizo.com Amazon: Impossible Magic (affiliate link) Paizo Announces Layoffs June 8th Reddit thread with links to support affected people Archives of Nethys announcement July 14th Paizo blog post about Archives of Nethys July 15th AoN FAQ July 17th UPDATE: Joint announcement from Paizo+AoN on Juy 24th More Info Ronald the Rules Lawyer on the Paizo layoffs Show Notes Paizo has ended its eight-year official licensing partnership with Archives of Nethys, and the Pathfinder community reacted with all the restraint and careful consideration of a barbarian discovering Reddit. We break down what is actually changing, what is not changing, and why Archives of Nethys is not being deleted, destroyed, paywalled, or dragged behind Paizo headquarters. The site can still provide Pathfinder and Starfinder rules for free, but it will lose access to most official artwork and will no longer receive books early enough to guarantee new content on release day. To understand why Paizo would make such an unpopular decision, we climb into the Wayback Machine and revisit the Diamond Comic Distributors bankruptcy, millions of dollars in inaccessible Paizo inventory, costly legal disputes, tariffs, financial losses, and the recent layoffs affecting roughly 15 percent of Paizo's staff. Paizo says the Archives of Nethys license required legal, financial, and administrative resources that the company can no longer justify, especially when the expected royalty payments never materialized. We also examine how both sides handled the announcement. Paizo communicated poorly, chose terrible timing, and apparently believed email was the ideal tool for navigating a beloved eight-year partnership during a financial crisis. Archives of Nethys responded emotionally, published its announcement without giving Paizo advance notice, omitted important context about ongoing negotiations and a six-month transition period, and then buried much of the clarification inside a video and forum comments. The result was a community firestorm in which everyone was angry, nobody had the complete story, and Diamond somehow remained the least surprising villain. Ultimately, this is not Paizo attempting a Wizards-style crackdown on free rules access. It is a struggling company cutting expenses while two groups of exhausted people make imperfect decisions under enormous stress. Support Archives of Nethys through Patreon or by disabling your ad blocker, purchase Pathfinder products directly from Paizo when possible, and perhaps give everyone enough time to get on a video call before declaring the death of the entire hobby. Key Takeaways Archives of Nethys is not shutting down. Its existing Pathfinder and Starfinder rules content will remain freely accessible. The major changes are the loss of most official Paizo artwork and the end of early PDF access, meaning new rules may no longer appear on release day. Paizo's decision comes amid severe financial pressure caused by the Diamond bankruptcy, inaccessible inventory, legal expenses, tariffs, losses, and staff layoffs. The license produced no royalties because Archives of Nethys operates through donations, advertising, and unpaid volunteer labor rather than as a profit-making business. Paizo says the relationship still required legal, licensing, financial, and administrative work, including policing unauthorized reuse of artwork taken from the site. Archives of Nethys presented an incomplete version of the situation in its original announcement, including leaving out ongoing negotiations and the six-month grace period for removing restricted artwork. Paizo also deserves criticism for poor communication, bad timing, and allowing an important partnership discussion to stall through email. The backlash was intensified by fear and incomplete information, not by evidence that Paizo intends to eliminate free access to its rules. Both organizations say they remain open to finding another arrangement, and the hosts believe a compromise may still be possible. Fans can support both sides by contributing to Archives of Nethys, disabling ad blockers on the site, and buying products directly from Paizo rather than through Amazon. Tyler proposes that Paizo create an affiliate program so Pathfinder creators can direct customers to Paizo's store while earning revenue and helping more money reach the publisher. The true villain remains Diamond, with capitalism receiving a strong honorable mention. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Tonight, the RPGBOT.Podcast enters the discourse arena, where Paizo is financially bleeding, Archives of Nethys accidentally brought a flamethrower to a contract negotiation, and the internet has already decided who the villain is without reading past the headline. Ash arrives with enough hot takes to melt adamantine, Tyler desperately attempts to preserve nuance, and Randall keeps feeding increasingly tortured metaphors into the Wayback Machine. Grab your popcorn, silence your notifications, and remember: the rules are still free. Everyone can please stop screaming now. UPDATE: Joint announcement from Paizo+AoN on Juy 24th Links Impossible Magic on paizo.com Amazon: Impossible Magic (affiliate link) Paizo Announces Layoffs June 8th Reddit thread with links to support affected people Archives of Nethys announcement July 14th Paizo blog post about Archives of Nethys July 15th AoN FAQ July 17th UPDATE: Joint announcement from Paizo+AoN on Juy 24th More Info Ronald the Rules Lawyer on the Paizo layoffs Show Notes Paizo has ended its eight-year official licensing partnership with Archives of Nethys, and the Pathfinder community reacted with all the restraint and careful consideration of a barbarian discovering Reddit. We break down what is actually changing, what is not changing, and why Archives of Nethys is not being deleted, destroyed, paywalled, or dragged behind Paizo headquarters. The site can still provide Pathfinder and Starfinder rules for free, but it will lose access to most official artwork and will no longer receive books early enough to guarantee new content on release day. To understand why Paizo would make such an unpopular decision, we climb into the Wayback Machine and revisit the Diamond Comic Distributors bankruptcy, millions of dollars in inaccessible Paizo inventory, costly legal disputes, tariffs, financial losses, and the recent layoffs affecting roughly 15 percent of Paizo's staff. Paizo says the Archives of Nethys license required legal, financial, and administrative resources that the company can no longer justify, especially when the expected royalty payments never materialized. We also examine how both sides handled the announcement. Paizo communicated poorly, chose terrible timing, and apparently believed email was the ideal tool for navigating a beloved eight-year partnership during a financial crisis. Archives of Nethys responded emotionally, published its announcement without giving Paizo advance notice, omitted important context about ongoing negotiations and a six-month transition period, and then buried much of the clarification inside a video and forum comments. The result was a community firestorm in which everyone was angry, nobody had the complete story, and Diamond somehow remained the least surprising villain. Ultimately, this is not Paizo attempting a Wizards-style crackdown on free rules access. It is a struggling company cutting expenses while two groups of exhausted people make imperfect decisions under enormous stress. Support Archives of Nethys through Patreon or by disabling your ad blocker, purchase Pathfinder products directly from Paizo when possible, and perhaps give everyone enough time to get on a video call before declaring the death of the entire hobby. Key Takeaways Archives of Nethys is not shutting down. Its existing Pathfinder and Starfinder rules content will remain freely accessible. The major changes are the loss of most official Paizo artwork and the end of early PDF access, meaning new rules may no longer appear on release day. Paizo's decision comes amid severe financial pressure caused by the Diamond bankruptcy, inaccessible inventory, legal expenses, tariffs, losses, and staff layoffs. The license produced no royalties because Archives of Nethys operates through donations, advertising, and unpaid volunteer labor rather than as a profit-making business. Paizo says the relationship still required legal, licensing, financial, and administrative work, including policing unauthorized reuse of artwork taken from the site. Archives of Nethys presented an incomplete version of the situation in its original announcement, including leaving out ongoing negotiations and the six-month grace period for removing restricted artwork. Paizo also deserves criticism for poor communication, bad timing, and allowing an important partnership discussion to stall through email. The backlash was intensified by fear and incomplete information, not by evidence that Paizo intends to eliminate free access to its rules. Both organizations say they remain open to finding another arrangement, and the hosts believe a compromise may still be possible. Fans can support both sides by contributing to Archives of Nethys, disabling ad blockers on the site, and buying products directly from Paizo rather than through Amazon. Tyler proposes that Paizo create an affiliate program so Pathfinder creators can direct customers to Paizo's store while earning revenue and helping more money reach the publisher. The true villain remains Diamond, with capitalism receiving a strong honorable mention. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
We return to Wizards of the Coast's Villainous Options, now revised after the first round was lovingly pushed down the stairs by public feedback. Some subclasses survived untouched. Some got a makeover. Some were taken behind the shed, especially the Primordial Patron, which had one great idea and the mechanical confidence of a wet napkin. Good news, though: the demon sorcerer finally feels demonic, the Titan Druid is now a proper kaiju tank, and the Hell Knight has upgraded from flaming disappointment to legally playable infernal gambling problem. Show Notes This episode revisits Wizards of the Coast's latest Unearthed Arcana update for Villainous Options, which means the crew returns to the scene of the crime to see what survived the feedback cycle, what got rewritten, and what was quietly removed from the suspect board. The earlier Villainous Options episodes gave us some strong concepts with mixed execution: villainous path feats like the Death Knight and Lich, subclasses like the Titan Druid and Hell Knight, and later options like the Path of Lament Barbarian, Pestilence Cleric, Venom Monk, and the now-defenestrated Primordial Patron Warlock. Some of those were apparently well-liked enough to move forward with little public revision. Others came back covered in red ink and shame. The episode opens by sorting out what is not in the new UA. Path of Lament, Pestilence Cleric, and Venom Monk appear to have landed well enough that they did not need another public pass, though the hosts still have a few lingering concerns about capstones, wording, and whether weaponized sadness is legally distinct from being a barbarian with theater kid energy. The Death Knight and Lich villain paths also seem likely to continue, though Ash remains skeptical that the Lich is as ready as WotC apparently thinks it is. The Primordial Patron, meanwhile, is gone for now, which hurts because the concept rules, but the subclass itself never really delivered on the fantasy of making a pact with an ancient elemental apocalypse. Then the real revisions begin with Circle of the Titan Druid, which gets a much-needed identity check. The old version wanted to be a giant monster but had all the durability of a parade float in a hailstorm. The new version leans harder into tanking: better AC, more temporary hit points, stronger damage scaling, a shorter but more practical Titan form duration, and a capstone swallow ability that finally feels like being eaten by a kaiju instead of being mildly inconvenienced by one. Behemoth and Insectoid both look more playable, with Insectoid getting a strong healing identity, while Leviathan still mostly answers the question, "What if your subclass feature was swimming?" Hell Knight also gets a major facelift, mostly by reducing its dependence on rolling exactly the right number before anything interesting happens. The infernal wounds now feel more like a real subclass engine, with rider effects that happen more consistently and Devil's Luck upgrades when the dice cooperate. It is much better than before, but the table still finds it a little too constrained by resources and a little too enamored with gambling mechanics. It is no longer borderline unplayable, which is progress, but it may still need another pass before it becomes the infernal fighter fantasy everyone clearly wants. The big winner is Demonic Sorcery. The previous version felt like a melee sorcerer with terrible life choices, a bad spell list, and an aura table that made everyone remember why random subclass tables are rarely fun. The revision gives it Abyssal Rupture, a movable sphere of demonic problems that pulls enemies around, creates battlefield control, scales into difficult terrain, and eventually supports summon fiend in a way that finally screams Abyss instead of discount Hexblade with a concussion. The spell list is also dramatically better, replacing nonsense like Hallow and overused Misty Step with options that fit the theme and support the playstyle. It still needs damage scaling on the rupture, but this is the rare UA glow-up where the hosts go from roasting the thing to wanting to play it. The episode also touches on the new feats and epic boons, which range from charming people by picking their pockets to setting better hunting traps to becoming weirdly hard to fool, possess, or kill with necrotic damage. The hosts speculate about what book this material is actually building toward, with possibilities ranging from a renamed Book of Vile Darkness to an evil campaign supplement, a fiendish planar guide, or something tied to the Abyss and Nine Hells. Whatever it becomes, the consensus is cautiously positive: WotC seems to be listening, the revisions are mostly moving in the right direction, and the demon sorcerer finally has enough flavor to stop apologizing for itself. Key Takeaways This UA is a feedback-driven revision of the previous Villainous Options material, not a totally new batch of evil toys. Path of Lament Barbarian, Pestilence Cleric, and Venom Monk appear to have been received well enough that they did not return for major public revision. The Death Knight and Lich villain paths seem likely to continue, though the hosts still think Lich needs more work and Death Knight may get broadened for more martial builds. The Primordial Patron Warlock is gone for now, which is sad because the idea is excellent, but the original execution did not feel like a pact with an elemental world-ending horror. Circle of the Titan Druid is much stronger now and has a clearer role as the tanky kaiju druid. Titan Druid's improved AC, temporary hit points, damage scaling, and better swallow feature make the subclass feel much closer to its fantasy. Behemoth looks solid, Insectoid now has a meaningful healer/tank angle, and Leviathan still feels like the one you pick because the campaign has too much water. Hell Knight is much better because infernal wounds now do interesting things more consistently instead of asking players to roll a six before the subclass becomes fun. Hell Knight still feels too resource-limited and may need another pass, especially if the goal is to make infernal wounds feel like the subclass's real engine. Demonic Sorcery is the standout winner of the revision. The new Abyssal Rupture gives Demonic Sorcery a strong identity built around battlefield control, forced movement, difficult terrain, and demon-flavored chaos. The Demonic Sorcery spell list is dramatically improved and now actually supports the theme instead of asking why a demon sorcerer has Hallow. The hosts like the revised Demonic Sorcery enough that it went from "why would I play this?" to "I would play this immediately." The new feats and epic boons are more mechanically interesting than expected, with a few strong options for social manipulation, traps, protection, and high-level anti-undead or anti-illusion play. The likely future product may be an evil campaign book, a spiritual successor to Book of Vile Darkness, or a broader fiendish/planar supplement. Overall verdict: WotC appears to be listening, the revisions are mostly better, and the villains are finally getting options that do more than look cool while failing their own saving throw. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
We return to Wizards of the Coast's Villainous Options, now revised after the first round was lovingly pushed down the stairs by public feedback. Some subclasses survived untouched. Some got a makeover. Some were taken behind the shed, especially the Primordial Patron, which had one great idea and the mechanical confidence of a wet napkin. Good news, though: the demon sorcerer finally feels demonic, the Titan Druid is now a proper kaiju tank, and the Hell Knight has upgraded from flaming disappointment to legally playable infernal gambling problem. Show Notes This episode revisits Wizards of the Coast's latest Unearthed Arcana update for Villainous Options, which means the crew returns to the scene of the crime to see what survived the feedback cycle, what got rewritten, and what was quietly removed from the suspect board. The earlier Villainous Options episodes gave us some strong concepts with mixed execution: villainous path feats like the Death Knight and Lich, subclasses like the Titan Druid and Hell Knight, and later options like the Path of Lament Barbarian, Pestilence Cleric, Venom Monk, and the now-defenestrated Primordial Patron Warlock. Some of those were apparently well-liked enough to move forward with little public revision. Others came back covered in red ink and shame. The episode opens by sorting out what is not in the new UA. Path of Lament, Pestilence Cleric, and Venom Monk appear to have landed well enough that they did not need another public pass, though the hosts still have a few lingering concerns about capstones, wording, and whether weaponized sadness is legally distinct from being a barbarian with theater kid energy. The Death Knight and Lich villain paths also seem likely to continue, though Ash remains skeptical that the Lich is as ready as WotC apparently thinks it is. The Primordial Patron, meanwhile, is gone for now, which hurts because the concept rules, but the subclass itself never really delivered on the fantasy of making a pact with an ancient elemental apocalypse. Then the real revisions begin with Circle of the Titan Druid, which gets a much-needed identity check. The old version wanted to be a giant monster but had all the durability of a parade float in a hailstorm. The new version leans harder into tanking: better AC, more temporary hit points, stronger damage scaling, a shorter but more practical Titan form duration, and a capstone swallow ability that finally feels like being eaten by a kaiju instead of being mildly inconvenienced by one. Behemoth and Insectoid both look more playable, with Insectoid getting a strong healing identity, while Leviathan still mostly answers the question, "What if your subclass feature was swimming?" Hell Knight also gets a major facelift, mostly by reducing its dependence on rolling exactly the right number before anything interesting happens. The infernal wounds now feel more like a real subclass engine, with rider effects that happen more consistently and Devil's Luck upgrades when the dice cooperate. It is much better than before, but the table still finds it a little too constrained by resources and a little too enamored with gambling mechanics. It is no longer borderline unplayable, which is progress, but it may still need another pass before it becomes the infernal fighter fantasy everyone clearly wants. The big winner is Demonic Sorcery. The previous version felt like a melee sorcerer with terrible life choices, a bad spell list, and an aura table that made everyone remember why random subclass tables are rarely fun. The revision gives it Abyssal Rupture, a movable sphere of demonic problems that pulls enemies around, creates battlefield control, scales into difficult terrain, and eventually supports summon fiend in a way that finally screams Abyss instead of discount Hexblade with a concussion. The spell list is also dramatically better, replacing nonsense like Hallow and overused Misty Step with options that fit the theme and support the playstyle. It still needs damage scaling on the rupture, but this is the rare UA glow-up where the hosts go from roasting the thing to wanting to play it. The episode also touches on the new feats and epic boons, which range from charming people by picking their pockets to setting better hunting traps to becoming weirdly hard to fool, possess, or kill with necrotic damage. The hosts speculate about what book this material is actually building toward, with possibilities ranging from a renamed Book of Vile Darkness to an evil campaign supplement, a fiendish planar guide, or something tied to the Abyss and Nine Hells. Whatever it becomes, the consensus is cautiously positive: WotC seems to be listening, the revisions are mostly moving in the right direction, and the demon sorcerer finally has enough flavor to stop apologizing for itself. Key Takeaways This UA is a feedback-driven revision of the previous Villainous Options material, not a totally new batch of evil toys. Path of Lament Barbarian, Pestilence Cleric, and Venom Monk appear to have been received well enough that they did not return for major public revision. The Death Knight and Lich villain paths seem likely to continue, though the hosts still think Lich needs more work and Death Knight may get broadened for more martial builds. The Primordial Patron Warlock is gone for now, which is sad because the idea is excellent, but the original execution did not feel like a pact with an elemental world-ending horror. Circle of the Titan Druid is much stronger now and has a clearer role as the tanky kaiju druid. Titan Druid's improved AC, temporary hit points, damage scaling, and better swallow feature make the subclass feel much closer to its fantasy. Behemoth looks solid, Insectoid now has a meaningful healer/tank angle, and Leviathan still feels like the one you pick because the campaign has too much water. Hell Knight is much better because infernal wounds now do interesting things more consistently instead of asking players to roll a six before the subclass becomes fun. Hell Knight still feels too resource-limited and may need another pass, especially if the goal is to make infernal wounds feel like the subclass's real engine. Demonic Sorcery is the standout winner of the revision. The new Abyssal Rupture gives Demonic Sorcery a strong identity built around battlefield control, forced movement, difficult terrain, and demon-flavored chaos. The Demonic Sorcery spell list is dramatically improved and now actually supports the theme instead of asking why a demon sorcerer has Hallow. The hosts like the revised Demonic Sorcery enough that it went from "why would I play this?" to "I would play this immediately." The new feats and epic boons are more mechanically interesting than expected, with a few strong options for social manipulation, traps, protection, and high-level anti-undead or anti-illusion play. The likely future product may be an evil campaign book, a spiritual successor to Book of Vile Darkness, or a broader fiendish/planar supplement. Overall verdict: WotC appears to be listening, the revisions are mostly better, and the villains are finally getting options that do more than look cool while failing their own saving throw. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
At levels 1 through 4, the 2014 Monk is a beautiful dream: you punch, you kick, you spend ki like a raccoon with a stolen credit card. Then levels 5 through 20 arrive, and suddenly the class asks, "Would you like to stun a dragon, run across a lake, catch a missile, become immune to poison, astral project emotionally, and still somehow worry about running out of ki before lunch?" This episode dives into the Monk's awkward, glorious, high-speed middle and late game, where every turn is a choice between tactical brilliance and blowing your entire budget on Flurry of Blows because punching four times feels spiritually correct. Show Notes In this episode of the RPGBOT.Podcast, the team continues the 2014 DnD 5e Monk breakdown by moving beyond the early levels and into the part of the class where things get weird, fast, and occasionally very effective. Levels 5 through 20 are where the Monk picks up its signature battlefield identity: mobility, disruption, defensive tricks, and the ability to make enemy spellcasters deeply regret standing within sprinting distance. The discussion centers on what Monks actually do well once Extra Attack, Stunning Strike, and higher-level ki features come online. This is not just about throwing more punches. It is about choosing when to spend ki, when to conserve it, which enemies deserve a Stunning Strike attempt, and how to use the Monk's speed to pressure weak points instead of face-tanking like a fighter with worse armor and better hamstrings. The episode also looks at the Monk's scaling problem. The class gains a lot of flavorful and useful features, but its damage can start to lag behind other martial characters unless the player leans into the Monk's strengths. That means playing like a skirmisher, controller, mage-hunter, and mobile problem solver rather than trying to win every fight by standing still and trading hits. By the late game, features like Evasion, Diamond Soul, Empty Body, and improved movement turn the Monk into something incredibly hard to pin down. You may not always be the biggest damage dealer at the table, but you can be the character who crosses the map, ruins the villain's concentration, survives the fireball, and then politely explains that gravity is more of a suggestion than a rule. Key Takeaways Level 5 is the Monk's big glow-up. Extra Attack and Stunning Strike dramatically change how the class plays, giving the Monk real battlefield control instead of just more ways to punch things. Stunning Strike is powerful, but expensive. It can shut down dangerous enemies, but burning ki on every hit is a fast road to becoming a lightly armored commoner with martial arts branding. Monks are skirmishers, not front-line tanks. Their speed, mobility, and defensive tools work best when they pick targets carefully, disrupt key enemies, and avoid getting surrounded. Ki management is the entire game. Flurry of Blows, Patient Defense, Step of the Wind, Stunning Strike, and subclass abilities all compete for the same limited resource, so every choice matters. The Monk is excellent at harassing casters and fragile backline enemies. High movement speed and multiple attacks make the Monk great at reaching enemies who thought they were safely hiding behind the big monsters. Defensive features become a major strength. Evasion, Stillness of Mind, Purity of Body, Diamond Soul, and Empty Body all help the Monk survive effects that can ruin other characters. Damage scaling can be frustrating. The Monk gets more options and survivability, but it may struggle to keep pace with optimized martial builds in raw damage. Ability scores are tight. Monks usually want Dexterity, Wisdom, and Constitution, which makes feats tempting but costly. Late-game Monks are weird in the best way. Running up walls, ignoring poison, surviving saving throws, turning invisible, and resisting damage all support the fantasy of a supernatural martial artist. The best Monk play is tactical, not automatic. The class rewards players who think about positioning, target priority, resource timing, and when not to spend ki just because the button is shiny. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
At levels 1 through 4, the 2014 Monk is a beautiful dream: you punch, you kick, you spend ki like a raccoon with a stolen credit card. Then levels 5 through 20 arrive, and suddenly the class asks, "Would you like to stun a dragon, run across a lake, catch a missile, become immune to poison, astral project emotionally, and still somehow worry about running out of ki before lunch?" This episode dives into the Monk's awkward, glorious, high-speed middle and late game, where every turn is a choice between tactical brilliance and blowing your entire budget on Flurry of Blows because punching four times feels spiritually correct. Show Notes In this episode of the RPGBOT.Podcast, the team continues the 2014 DnD 5e Monk breakdown by moving beyond the early levels and into the part of the class where things get weird, fast, and occasionally very effective. Levels 5 through 20 are where the Monk picks up its signature battlefield identity: mobility, disruption, defensive tricks, and the ability to make enemy spellcasters deeply regret standing within sprinting distance. The discussion centers on what Monks actually do well once Extra Attack, Stunning Strike, and higher-level ki features come online. This is not just about throwing more punches. It is about choosing when to spend ki, when to conserve it, which enemies deserve a Stunning Strike attempt, and how to use the Monk's speed to pressure weak points instead of face-tanking like a fighter with worse armor and better hamstrings. The episode also looks at the Monk's scaling problem. The class gains a lot of flavorful and useful features, but its damage can start to lag behind other martial characters unless the player leans into the Monk's strengths. That means playing like a skirmisher, controller, mage-hunter, and mobile problem solver rather than trying to win every fight by standing still and trading hits. By the late game, features like Evasion, Diamond Soul, Empty Body, and improved movement turn the Monk into something incredibly hard to pin down. You may not always be the biggest damage dealer at the table, but you can be the character who crosses the map, ruins the villain's concentration, survives the fireball, and then politely explains that gravity is more of a suggestion than a rule. Key Takeaways Level 5 is the Monk's big glow-up. Extra Attack and Stunning Strike dramatically change how the class plays, giving the Monk real battlefield control instead of just more ways to punch things. Stunning Strike is powerful, but expensive. It can shut down dangerous enemies, but burning ki on every hit is a fast road to becoming a lightly armored commoner with martial arts branding. Monks are skirmishers, not front-line tanks. Their speed, mobility, and defensive tools work best when they pick targets carefully, disrupt key enemies, and avoid getting surrounded. Ki management is the entire game. Flurry of Blows, Patient Defense, Step of the Wind, Stunning Strike, and subclass abilities all compete for the same limited resource, so every choice matters. The Monk is excellent at harassing casters and fragile backline enemies. High movement speed and multiple attacks make the Monk great at reaching enemies who thought they were safely hiding behind the big monsters. Defensive features become a major strength. Evasion, Stillness of Mind, Purity of Body, Diamond Soul, and Empty Body all help the Monk survive effects that can ruin other characters. Damage scaling can be frustrating. The Monk gets more options and survivability, but it may struggle to keep pace with optimized martial builds in raw damage. Ability scores are tight. Monks usually want Dexterity, Wisdom, and Constitution, which makes feats tempting but costly. Late-game Monks are weird in the best way. Running up walls, ignoring poison, surviving saving throws, turning invisible, and resisting damage all support the fantasy of a supernatural martial artist. The best Monk play is tactical, not automatic. The class rewards players who think about positioning, target priority, resource timing, and when not to spend ki just because the button is shiny. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
This week on the RPGBOT.Podcast, the hosts ask the eternal tabletop question: what happens when your beloved fantasy RPG grows up, gets a driver's license, discovers firearms, and immediately becomes everyone's problem? We begin with PishPash My Memory is Trash merch, accidental mug design crimes, Pride, wizard bazookas, and Ash's long-simmering legal case against the movie Bright. Then we get to the real issue: how do you let someone fight Tiamat with an Uzi without turning your campaign into a spreadsheet, a war crime, or Shadowrun with the serial numbers filed off? Show Notes In this episode, the RPGBOT crew takes a deep dive into adapting fantasy tabletop RPG systems like D&D and Pathfinder to other technology levels, including modern fantasy, science fiction, cyberpunk-adjacent worlds, post-apocalyptic settings, and anything else where a greatsword might have to share table space with a grenade launcher. Tyler walks through the history of previous attempts to drag D&D-style mechanics out of the dungeon and into other genres, including d20 Star Wars, d20 Modern, Star Wars Saga Edition, Star Wars 5e, and the often-forgotten Modern Magic Unearthed Arcana. Along the way, the hosts dig into how those systems handled things like armor, hit points, wounds, vitality, class design, talents, occupations, reputation, and the eternal question of whether getting shot with a blaster should feel worse than being poked with a longsword. The conversation turns into a practical design checklist for anyone trying to run fantasy rules in a modern or sci-fi setting. The big issues are weapons, armor, hit points, movement, vehicles, skills, tools, hacking, currency, magic, classes, monsters, and access to dangerous gear. A gun that does more damage than a sword is easy to write down. Making that gun fun, balanced, available, expensive, illegal, scary, and not immediately campaign-breaking is the actual work. The hosts also wrestle with the big philosophical question: at what point have you changed D&D so much that you should just play a different game? Tyler's rule of changing three major things makes its return, Ash argues for fantasy with modern aesthetics, Randall brings up comet-based magic awakenings and Maximum Overdrive, and everyone briefly imagines what happens when a party of adventurers has to fight a kaiju from inside a tank. Finally, the Question of the Week asks the most important dice-related question possible: what is your favorite die, and which one deserves to be thrown into the sea? Ash defends the d8 and declares war on the foot-stabbing d4. Tyler gives some love to the underappreciated d12. Randall hates the actual d100 because it is basically a tiny chaotic bowling ball that refuses to stop rolling. D20 Modern on DMsGuild (affiliate link) D20 Future on DMsGuild (affiliate link) SW5e Bright RPGBOT.Store DnD 5e modern rules UA "Modern Magic" Dan Helmick's update IMDB Maximum Overdrive Dimension 20: A Starstruck Odyssey Dice Miner (affiliate link) Key Takeaways Adapting fantasy RPGs to modern or sci-fi settings is not just about adding guns. You have to rethink combat assumptions, armor, hit points, movement, skills, equipment, enemies, and the economy. Previous d20-based games offer useful examples. d20 Star Wars experimented with wounds and vitality. d20 Modern used basic classes tied to ability scores, occupations, talents, and advanced classes. Star Wars Saga Edition showed some early design DNA that later appeared in 4e. Firearms and modern weapons change the math quickly. A pistol, rifle, grenade, or blaster can make traditional fantasy damage assumptions look very strange unless the system accounts for armor, accuracy, availability, legality, and consequences. Armor may need to work differently. In a modern game, characters probably are not walking around in plate armor, so armor might reduce damage, resist ballistic attacks, or be replaced partly by class-based defense or plot-armor-style scaling. Hit points can still work, but they need a clear interpretation. They might represent luck, stamina, near misses, tactical positioning, or cinematic survival rather than literal meat points. Vehicles change encounter design. Horses and overland travel are one thing. Cars, motorcycles, tanks, aircraft, and spaceships make movement, chase scenes, distance, and random encounters much more complicated. Skills and tools need updating. Computers, hacking, piloting, driving, engineering, and modern medicine may need to be skills, tool proficiencies, lore-style specialties, or full subsystems depending on how important they are to the campaign. The modern world makes Strength harder to justify unless the game gives it a reason to matter. Close quarters, carrying capacity, melee restrictions, grappling, armor, and specialized builds can help keep strong characters relevant. Classes may need reskinning rather than replacement. A barbarian might become a super-soldier, a rage-serum bruiser, or a minigun-wielding menace. A cleric might serve an ideal, philosophy, cosmic force, AI god, or belief system rather than a traditional deity. Magic can stay magical, become technology, or sit beside technology. Fireball might still be a spell, or it might be a grenade, a rocket launcher, a plasma weapon, or a problem for your insurance provider. Monsters still work if you treat them thoughtfully. Vampires, mind flayers, zombies, kaiju, and the Tarrasque can all survive in modern settings if their defenses, tactics, environment, and narrative role make sense. Access matters. Just because tanks, RPGs, and military hardware exist does not mean the party can buy them at Fantasy Costco. Price, legality, scarcity, black markets, and consequences are balancing tools. Currency may be better handled abstractly. Modern money can become tedious fast, so a wealth stat or resource system may work better than tracking every nickel, dime, credit card, crypto wallet, and suspicious suitcase full of cash. Tyler's three-change rule is a useful warning sign. If you need to make three huge changes to force D&D into another genre, consider whether another RPG already does what you want better. The episode's greatest lesson may be this: you can absolutely kill Tiamat with an Uzi, but first you need to know what that does to armor class, encounter balance, campaign tone, and the local black market. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
This week on the RPGBOT.Podcast, the hosts ask the eternal tabletop question: what happens when your beloved fantasy RPG grows up, gets a driver's license, discovers firearms, and immediately becomes everyone's problem? We begin with PishPash My Memory is Trash merch, accidental mug design crimes, Pride, wizard bazookas, and Ash's long-simmering legal case against the movie Bright. Then we get to the real issue: how do you let someone fight Tiamat with an Uzi without turning your campaign into a spreadsheet, a war crime, or Shadowrun with the serial numbers filed off? Show Notes In this episode, the RPGBOT crew takes a deep dive into adapting fantasy tabletop RPG systems like D&D and Pathfinder to other technology levels, including modern fantasy, science fiction, cyberpunk-adjacent worlds, post-apocalyptic settings, and anything else where a greatsword might have to share table space with a grenade launcher. Tyler walks through the history of previous attempts to drag D&D-style mechanics out of the dungeon and into other genres, including d20 Star Wars, d20 Modern, Star Wars Saga Edition, Star Wars 5e, and the often-forgotten Modern Magic Unearthed Arcana. Along the way, the hosts dig into how those systems handled things like armor, hit points, wounds, vitality, class design, talents, occupations, reputation, and the eternal question of whether getting shot with a blaster should feel worse than being poked with a longsword. The conversation turns into a practical design checklist for anyone trying to run fantasy rules in a modern or sci-fi setting. The big issues are weapons, armor, hit points, movement, vehicles, skills, tools, hacking, currency, magic, classes, monsters, and access to dangerous gear. A gun that does more damage than a sword is easy to write down. Making that gun fun, balanced, available, expensive, illegal, scary, and not immediately campaign-breaking is the actual work. The hosts also wrestle with the big philosophical question: at what point have you changed D&D so much that you should just play a different game? Tyler's rule of changing three major things makes its return, Ash argues for fantasy with modern aesthetics, Randall brings up comet-based magic awakenings and Maximum Overdrive, and everyone briefly imagines what happens when a party of adventurers has to fight a kaiju from inside a tank. Finally, the Question of the Week asks the most important dice-related question possible: what is your favorite die, and which one deserves to be thrown into the sea? Ash defends the d8 and declares war on the foot-stabbing d4. Tyler gives some love to the underappreciated d12. Randall hates the actual d100 because it is basically a tiny chaotic bowling ball that refuses to stop rolling. D20 Modern on DMsGuild (affiliate link) D20 Future on DMsGuild (affiliate link) SW5e Bright RPGBOT.Store DnD 5e modern rules UA "Modern Magic" Dan Helmick's update IMDB Maximum Overdrive Dimension 20: A Starstruck Odyssey Dice Miner (affiliate link) Key Takeaways Adapting fantasy RPGs to modern or sci-fi settings is not just about adding guns. You have to rethink combat assumptions, armor, hit points, movement, skills, equipment, enemies, and the economy. Previous d20-based games offer useful examples. d20 Star Wars experimented with wounds and vitality. d20 Modern used basic classes tied to ability scores, occupations, talents, and advanced classes. Star Wars Saga Edition showed some early design DNA that later appeared in 4e. Firearms and modern weapons change the math quickly. A pistol, rifle, grenade, or blaster can make traditional fantasy damage assumptions look very strange unless the system accounts for armor, accuracy, availability, legality, and consequences. Armor may need to work differently. In a modern game, characters probably are not walking around in plate armor, so armor might reduce damage, resist ballistic attacks, or be replaced partly by class-based defense or plot-armor-style scaling. Hit points can still work, but they need a clear interpretation. They might represent luck, stamina, near misses, tactical positioning, or cinematic survival rather than literal meat points. Vehicles change encounter design. Horses and overland travel are one thing. Cars, motorcycles, tanks, aircraft, and spaceships make movement, chase scenes, distance, and random encounters much more complicated. Skills and tools need updating. Computers, hacking, piloting, driving, engineering, and modern medicine may need to be skills, tool proficiencies, lore-style specialties, or full subsystems depending on how important they are to the campaign. The modern world makes Strength harder to justify unless the game gives it a reason to matter. Close quarters, carrying capacity, melee restrictions, grappling, armor, and specialized builds can help keep strong characters relevant. Classes may need reskinning rather than replacement. A barbarian might become a super-soldier, a rage-serum bruiser, or a minigun-wielding menace. A cleric might serve an ideal, philosophy, cosmic force, AI god, or belief system rather than a traditional deity. Magic can stay magical, become technology, or sit beside technology. Fireball might still be a spell, or it might be a grenade, a rocket launcher, a plasma weapon, or a problem for your insurance provider. Monsters still work if you treat them thoughtfully. Vampires, mind flayers, zombies, kaiju, and the Tarrasque can all survive in modern settings if their defenses, tactics, environment, and narrative role make sense. Access matters. Just because tanks, RPGs, and military hardware exist does not mean the party can buy them at Fantasy Costco. Price, legality, scarcity, black markets, and consequences are balancing tools. Currency may be better handled abstractly. Modern money can become tedious fast, so a wealth stat or resource system may work better than tracking every nickel, dime, credit card, crypto wallet, and suspicious suitcase full of cash. Tyler's three-change rule is a useful warning sign. If you need to make three huge changes to force D&D into another genre, consider whether another RPG already does what you want better. The episode's greatest lesson may be this: you can absolutely kill Tiamat with an Uzi, but first you need to know what that does to armor class, encounter balance, campaign tone, and the local black market. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Before the rogues can reach legendary proficiency, the episode must first survive the real high-level threats: Producer Dan being sleepy, Tyler's aggressively early bedtime policy, Ash explaining the freedom of having no kids, a Starfinder boss who walks through space walls, and the devastating possibility that a spider might disrupt Tyler's routine. Once everyone finally remembers this is supposed to be a Pathfinder 2e rogue episode, the party returns to levels 11 through 20, where rogues stop being "sneaky knife people" and become invisible, paralyzing, truth-proof, pants-stealing engines of felony. Show Notes This episode continues the RPGBOT.Podcast Pathfinder 2e rogue build series, picking up at level 11 and carrying the Mastermind, Scoundrel, and Ruffian builds all the way to level 20. Tyler, Ash, and Randall revisit their characters and explore what happens when rogues move beyond "I stab the off-guard guy" and into "I delete actions, rewrite memories, steal impossible objects, ignore magical detection, and turn violence into a pyramid scheme." Tyler's Mastermind continues to lean into Recall Knowledge, ranged support, and battlefield control. His rogue knows things about things, then stabs those things, then tells his friends how to stab those things better. Randall's Ruffian keeps building into the direct approach: intimidation, bleed, debilitating strikes, reactive setups, and the wonderful simplicity of punching someone so effectively that an ally also gets to hit them. Ash's Catfolk Scoundrel doubles down on deception, stealth, social nonsense, and the extremely upsetting power to convince someone that he has secretly been part of their life the whole time. The mid-level progression brings several major rogue upgrades. Critical Debilitation and Bloody Debilitation add nasty new rider effects. Greater Rogue Reflexes turns Reflex saves into a comedy routine where explosions are mostly someone else's problem. Double Debilitation lets rogues stack problems on top of problems. Master Strike gives rogues a terrifying late-game opener that can paralyze, knock unconscious, or kill a target if the dice cooperate. The episode also highlights how wild high-level skill feats become. Reveal Machinations lets Ash emotionally destroy someone by claiming to be their secret dad. Scare to Death lets Randall intimidate people so hard their hearts may simply quit. Legendary Thief opens the door to absurd theft, including the possibility of stealing weapons, armor, or, naturally, pants. Blank Slate makes Ash so good at lying that divination magic simply refuses to perceive him. True Perception gets called out as a must-have, because permanent true sight is extremely hard to argue with. By level 20, everyone converges on Enduring Debilitation because sometimes the correct answer is obvious. Extending a debilitation for a full minute is brutal, especially when it means a boss might lose a third of their actions for most of a fight. The hosts also shout out other capstone-style options like Hidden Paragon, Steel Essence, Perfect Distraction, Reactive Distraction, and Craft Anything, showing that high-level rogues can be invisible legends, impossible thieves, decoy-swapping nightmares, or walking item factories. In classic RPGBOT fashion, the episode is equal parts mechanical breakdown, build advice, and conversational derailment. It is a guide to high-level rogues, but it is also a warning: once a rogue reaches legendary proficiency, the laws of physics, social trust, and basic workplace safety are all optional. Key Takeaways This episode covers Pathfinder 2e rogues from levels 11 through 20, continuing the three builds from Part 1: Tyler's Mastermind, Ash's Catfolk Scoundrel, and Randall's Ruffian. High-level rogues become much more than sneak attackers. They gain stronger saves, better weapon proficiency, powerful debilitations, absurd skill feats, and some truly ridiculous capstone options. Incredible Scout is a strong party-facing general feat because it can improve initiative for the whole group when using the Scout exploration activity. Critical Debilitation is a standout level 12 option because slowed is one of the nastiest conditions in Pathfinder 2e, and even a success can still matter. Bloody Debilitation gives rogues a straightforward damage option by adding significant persistent bleed damage. Greater Rogue Reflexes makes rogues extremely hard to punish with Reflex-based effects, especially combined with their already strong Reflex progression. Leave an Opening is excellent for team damage because it lets an ally make a reactive strike when the rogue critically hits an off-guard target. Double Debilitation lets rogues apply two debilitations at once, but the interaction matters. If one debilitation ends, both end, so sometimes one strong debilitation is better than stacking. Reveal Machinations is one of the funniest skill feats discussed. Ash frames it as convincing an enemy that you have secretly been their father, mentor, or recurring trauma goblin all along. Scare to Death is both mechanically useful and hilarious. Even when it does not kill something outright, frightened conditions are still valuable. Dispelling Slice gives rogues a way to make casters sad by cutting through active magical effects on an off-guard target. Legendary Thief opens up absurd theft possibilities, including stealing things that should be impossible to steal under normal circumstances. Blank Slate is peak Scoundrel nonsense. Ash becomes so good at deception that detection, revelation, and scrying magic can simply fail to notice him. Powerful Sneak makes Sneak Attack more reliable by helping against precision immunity or resistance and improving low sneak attack damage rolls. Master Strike is a terrifying level 19 feature that lets rogues add a major incapacitating effect when they damage an off-guard target. True Perception gets called out as an incredible general feat because constant true sight is useful on almost any character who can qualify. Enduring Debilitation is the big level 20 winner. Making a debilitation last for a full minute can dramatically change a boss fight. Hidden Paragon, Steel Essence, Craft Anything, Perfect Distraction, and Reactive Distraction show how high-level rogues can specialize into legendary stealth, impossible theft, crafting absurdity, or decoy-based nonsense. The Mastermind becomes a knowledge-based support striker, the Ruffian becomes a fear-and-bleed melee bully, and the Scoundrel becomes a deception-fueled social and stealth menace. The real lesson: high-level rogues do not just break into places. They break action economy, memories, magic detection, enemy confidence, and possibly the pants economy. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Before the rogues can reach legendary proficiency, the episode must first survive the real high-level threats: Producer Dan being sleepy, Tyler's aggressively early bedtime policy, Ash explaining the freedom of having no kids, a Starfinder boss who walks through space walls, and the devastating possibility that a spider might disrupt Tyler's routine. Once everyone finally remembers this is supposed to be a Pathfinder 2e rogue episode, the party returns to levels 11 through 20, where rogues stop being "sneaky knife people" and become invisible, paralyzing, truth-proof, pants-stealing engines of felony. Show Notes This episode continues the RPGBOT.Podcast Pathfinder 2e rogue build series, picking up at level 11 and carrying the Mastermind, Scoundrel, and Ruffian builds all the way to level 20. Tyler, Ash, and Randall revisit their characters and explore what happens when rogues move beyond "I stab the off-guard guy" and into "I delete actions, rewrite memories, steal impossible objects, ignore magical detection, and turn violence into a pyramid scheme." Tyler's Mastermind continues to lean into Recall Knowledge, ranged support, and battlefield control. His rogue knows things about things, then stabs those things, then tells his friends how to stab those things better. Randall's Ruffian keeps building into the direct approach: intimidation, bleed, debilitating strikes, reactive setups, and the wonderful simplicity of punching someone so effectively that an ally also gets to hit them. Ash's Catfolk Scoundrel doubles down on deception, stealth, social nonsense, and the extremely upsetting power to convince someone that he has secretly been part of their life the whole time. The mid-level progression brings several major rogue upgrades. Critical Debilitation and Bloody Debilitation add nasty new rider effects. Greater Rogue Reflexes turns Reflex saves into a comedy routine where explosions are mostly someone else's problem. Double Debilitation lets rogues stack problems on top of problems. Master Strike gives rogues a terrifying late-game opener that can paralyze, knock unconscious, or kill a target if the dice cooperate. The episode also highlights how wild high-level skill feats become. Reveal Machinations lets Ash emotionally destroy someone by claiming to be their secret dad. Scare to Death lets Randall intimidate people so hard their hearts may simply quit. Legendary Thief opens the door to absurd theft, including the possibility of stealing weapons, armor, or, naturally, pants. Blank Slate makes Ash so good at lying that divination magic simply refuses to perceive him. True Perception gets called out as a must-have, because permanent true sight is extremely hard to argue with. By level 20, everyone converges on Enduring Debilitation because sometimes the correct answer is obvious. Extending a debilitation for a full minute is brutal, especially when it means a boss might lose a third of their actions for most of a fight. The hosts also shout out other capstone-style options like Hidden Paragon, Steel Essence, Perfect Distraction, Reactive Distraction, and Craft Anything, showing that high-level rogues can be invisible legends, impossible thieves, decoy-swapping nightmares, or walking item factories. In classic RPGBOT fashion, the episode is equal parts mechanical breakdown, build advice, and conversational derailment. It is a guide to high-level rogues, but it is also a warning: once a rogue reaches legendary proficiency, the laws of physics, social trust, and basic workplace safety are all optional. Key Takeaways This episode covers Pathfinder 2e rogues from levels 11 through 20, continuing the three builds from Part 1: Tyler's Mastermind, Ash's Catfolk Scoundrel, and Randall's Ruffian. High-level rogues become much more than sneak attackers. They gain stronger saves, better weapon proficiency, powerful debilitations, absurd skill feats, and some truly ridiculous capstone options. Incredible Scout is a strong party-facing general feat because it can improve initiative for the whole group when using the Scout exploration activity. Critical Debilitation is a standout level 12 option because slowed is one of the nastiest conditions in Pathfinder 2e, and even a success can still matter. Bloody Debilitation gives rogues a straightforward damage option by adding significant persistent bleed damage. Greater Rogue Reflexes makes rogues extremely hard to punish with Reflex-based effects, especially combined with their already strong Reflex progression. Leave an Opening is excellent for team damage because it lets an ally make a reactive strike when the rogue critically hits an off-guard target. Double Debilitation lets rogues apply two debilitations at once, but the interaction matters. If one debilitation ends, both end, so sometimes one strong debilitation is better than stacking. Reveal Machinations is one of the funniest skill feats discussed. Ash frames it as convincing an enemy that you have secretly been their father, mentor, or recurring trauma goblin all along. Scare to Death is both mechanically useful and hilarious. Even when it does not kill something outright, frightened conditions are still valuable. Dispelling Slice gives rogues a way to make casters sad by cutting through active magical effects on an off-guard target. Legendary Thief opens up absurd theft possibilities, including stealing things that should be impossible to steal under normal circumstances. Blank Slate is peak Scoundrel nonsense. Ash becomes so good at deception that detection, revelation, and scrying magic can simply fail to notice him. Powerful Sneak makes Sneak Attack more reliable by helping against precision immunity or resistance and improving low sneak attack damage rolls. Master Strike is a terrifying level 19 feature that lets rogues add a major incapacitating effect when they damage an off-guard target. True Perception gets called out as an incredible general feat because constant true sight is useful on almost any character who can qualify. Enduring Debilitation is the big level 20 winner. Making a debilitation last for a full minute can dramatically change a boss fight. Hidden Paragon, Steel Essence, Craft Anything, Perfect Distraction, and Reactive Distraction show how high-level rogues can specialize into legendary stealth, impossible theft, crafting absurdity, or decoy-based nonsense. The Mastermind becomes a knowledge-based support striker, the Ruffian becomes a fear-and-bleed melee bully, and the Scoundrel becomes a deception-fueled social and stealth menace. The real lesson: high-level rogues do not just break into places. They break action economy, memories, magic detection, enemy confidence, and possibly the pants economy. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Monks are supposed to be serene masters of body, mind, and spirit, which is adorable because in 2014 DnD 5e they mostly begin life as a lightly dressed Dex-Wis-Con spreadsheet sprinting toward danger with 10 hit points and a dream. This week, the RPGBOT crew enters the monastery to ask the big questions. Can you punch your way to enlightenment? Is ki a precious spiritual resource or just a tiny battery labeled please do not waste on disappointment? And at levels 1 through 4, are Monks ascending to greatness, or are they simply discovering that inner peace does not count as armor? Show Notes This episode begins the RPGBOT.Podcast's two-part breakdown of the 2014 DnD 5e Monk, starting where every fragile martial arts legend begins: levels 1 through 4. The crew digs into what makes the Monk exciting, frustrating, stylish, and mechanically hungry enough to eat every good ability score on your character sheet. The conversation looks at the Monk's core identity as a fast, unarmored martial character built around Dexterity, Wisdom, and Constitution. That sounds elegant until you realize the class wants all three of those stats immediately, then quietly asks whether you also had room for feats, survivability, and emotional support snacks. From Unarmored Defense to Martial Arts, the early Monk has a lot of cool tools, but not always enough breathing room to use them comfortably. The team also explores the Monk's early features, including Flurry of Blows, Slow Fall, and the looming promise of Stunning Strike. There is plenty to like here, especially for players who enjoy movement, positioning, and the fantasy of solving problems with disciplined violence. But the episode also does not shy away from the class's pain points, including limited weapon options, resource pressure, and design choices that make the Monk feel like it is constantly trying to do three jobs while dressed for yoga. Subclasses also enter the dojo, with discussion of options like Ascendant Dragon, Open Hand, Shadow, Drunken Master, Four Elements, Long Death, Mercy, and Cobalt Soul. Some bring strong flavor, some bring real mechanical value, and some bring the familiar DnD experience of reading a subclass feature and whispering, why would you do this to me? Along the way, the crew talks optimization, multiclassing, race choices, ability score improvements, and how to build a Monk that can actually survive long enough to become the terrifying battlefield blur you imagined. It is a practical, opinionated, and occasionally exasperated look at a class with fantastic vibes, uneven mechanics, and the eternal promise that someday, somehow, punching a dragon in the ankle will be a sound tactical plan. Key Takeaways The 2014 DnD 5e Monk has one of the strongest class fantasies in the game, but the mechanics can struggle to fully support it. Early Monks rely heavily on Dexterity, Wisdom, and Constitution, making them very ability-score dependent right from level 1. Unarmored Defense is flavorful and useful, but it also means the Monk needs strong stats to keep up defensively. Martial Arts gives the Monk its core identity, letting the character fight with speed, flexibility, and style without relying on heavy weapons or armor. Weapon limitations can make early Monk choices feel narrower than expected, especially compared to other martial classes. Ki is powerful but limited, so early Monks need to be careful about when they spend it and when they save it. Flurry of Blows is iconic, but it competes for the same limited resource pool as other Monk tricks. Slow Fall is useful and very funny when it works, especially if your campaign includes cliffs, towers, rooftops, or poor decisions. Stunning Strike is one of the Monk's most famous features, but its effectiveness depends heavily on enemy Constitution saves and ki availability. Subclass choice matters a lot because some Monk subclasses help solve the class's problems, while others mostly hand you a decorative ribbon and a bill. Open Hand and Mercy tend to offer more reliable mechanical value, while subclasses like Four Elements can be harder to recommend without generous table support. Shadow Monk brings strong utility and sneaky fantasy, especially for players who want mobility, stealth, and magical ninja nonsense. Ascendant Dragon adds big style and elemental flavor, giving the Monk a more dramatic combat identity. Drunken Master, Long Death, and Cobalt Soul each offer distinct flavor and tools, but their value depends heavily on campaign style and player expectations. Multiclassing can help some Monk builds, but it can also delay important class features and make an already hungry build even hungrier. Ability Score Improvements are especially important because the Monk often needs raw stats more than flashy feats. Race choice can make a meaningful difference, especially when it supports Dexterity, Wisdom, survivability, mobility, or extra utility. The Monk works best when the player leans into movement, positioning, skirmishing, and selective resource use rather than trying to stand still and trade hits like a Fighter. The class is stylish, mobile, and fun, but it asks the player to manage limitations carefully. The Monk's biggest tragedy is that it looks like a simple punch class, but underneath the robes is a complicated optimization puzzle doing parkour. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Monks are supposed to be serene masters of body, mind, and spirit, which is adorable because in 2014 DnD 5e they mostly begin life as a lightly dressed Dex-Wis-Con spreadsheet sprinting toward danger with 10 hit points and a dream. This week, the RPGBOT crew enters the monastery to ask the big questions. Can you punch your way to enlightenment? Is ki a precious spiritual resource or just a tiny battery labeled please do not waste on disappointment? And at levels 1 through 4, are Monks ascending to greatness, or are they simply discovering that inner peace does not count as armor? Show Notes This episode begins the RPGBOT.Podcast's two-part breakdown of the 2014 DnD 5e Monk, starting where every fragile martial arts legend begins: levels 1 through 4. The crew digs into what makes the Monk exciting, frustrating, stylish, and mechanically hungry enough to eat every good ability score on your character sheet. The conversation looks at the Monk's core identity as a fast, unarmored martial character built around Dexterity, Wisdom, and Constitution. That sounds elegant until you realize the class wants all three of those stats immediately, then quietly asks whether you also had room for feats, survivability, and emotional support snacks. From Unarmored Defense to Martial Arts, the early Monk has a lot of cool tools, but not always enough breathing room to use them comfortably. The team also explores the Monk's early features, including Flurry of Blows, Slow Fall, and the looming promise of Stunning Strike. There is plenty to like here, especially for players who enjoy movement, positioning, and the fantasy of solving problems with disciplined violence. But the episode also does not shy away from the class's pain points, including limited weapon options, resource pressure, and design choices that make the Monk feel like it is constantly trying to do three jobs while dressed for yoga. Subclasses also enter the dojo, with discussion of options like Ascendant Dragon, Open Hand, Shadow, Drunken Master, Four Elements, Long Death, Mercy, and Cobalt Soul. Some bring strong flavor, some bring real mechanical value, and some bring the familiar DnD experience of reading a subclass feature and whispering, why would you do this to me? Along the way, the crew talks optimization, multiclassing, race choices, ability score improvements, and how to build a Monk that can actually survive long enough to become the terrifying battlefield blur you imagined. It is a practical, opinionated, and occasionally exasperated look at a class with fantastic vibes, uneven mechanics, and the eternal promise that someday, somehow, punching a dragon in the ankle will be a sound tactical plan. Key Takeaways The 2014 DnD 5e Monk has one of the strongest class fantasies in the game, but the mechanics can struggle to fully support it. Early Monks rely heavily on Dexterity, Wisdom, and Constitution, making them very ability-score dependent right from level 1. Unarmored Defense is flavorful and useful, but it also means the Monk needs strong stats to keep up defensively. Martial Arts gives the Monk its core identity, letting the character fight with speed, flexibility, and style without relying on heavy weapons or armor. Weapon limitations can make early Monk choices feel narrower than expected, especially compared to other martial classes. Ki is powerful but limited, so early Monks need to be careful about when they spend it and when they save it. Flurry of Blows is iconic, but it competes for the same limited resource pool as other Monk tricks. Slow Fall is useful and very funny when it works, especially if your campaign includes cliffs, towers, rooftops, or poor decisions. Stunning Strike is one of the Monk's most famous features, but its effectiveness depends heavily on enemy Constitution saves and ki availability. Subclass choice matters a lot because some Monk subclasses help solve the class's problems, while others mostly hand you a decorative ribbon and a bill. Open Hand and Mercy tend to offer more reliable mechanical value, while subclasses like Four Elements can be harder to recommend without generous table support. Shadow Monk brings strong utility and sneaky fantasy, especially for players who want mobility, stealth, and magical ninja nonsense. Ascendant Dragon adds big style and elemental flavor, giving the Monk a more dramatic combat identity. Drunken Master, Long Death, and Cobalt Soul each offer distinct flavor and tools, but their value depends heavily on campaign style and player expectations. Multiclassing can help some Monk builds, but it can also delay important class features and make an already hungry build even hungrier. Ability Score Improvements are especially important because the Monk often needs raw stats more than flashy feats. Race choice can make a meaningful difference, especially when it supports Dexterity, Wisdom, survivability, mobility, or extra utility. The Monk works best when the player leans into movement, positioning, skirmishing, and selective resource use rather than trying to stand still and trade hits like a Fighter. The class is stylish, mobile, and fun, but it asks the player to manage limitations carefully. The Monk's biggest tragedy is that it looks like a simple punch class, but underneath the robes is a complicated optimization puzzle doing parkour. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Once the table finally escapes the opening chaos and cat crimes, Tyler, Randall, and Ash dive into Pathfinder 2e rogues, proving that the class is not just a sneaky knife gremlin. It is also a walking toolbox, a social menace, a battlefield problem, and so much more Show Notes This episode begins the RPGBOT.Podcast breakdown of Pathfinder 2e rogues, covering levels 1 through 10 and exploring how the class develops from nimble opportunist into a precision-damage nightmare with more skills than common sense. Tyler, Randall, and Ash each bring a different rogue racket to the table, with Tyler building a Mastermind, Ash building a Scoundrel, and Randall building a Ruffian. The conversation starts with the rogue's core identity: Sneak Attack, off-guard targets, excellent skills, strong Reflex saves, and the sheer absurdity of getting skill increases and skill feats constantly. The hosts explain how Pathfinder rogues differ from their 5e cousins, especially around precision damage, surprise attack, and how off-guard creates the opening rogues need to ruin someone's day. From there, the builds split into very different flavors of criminal excellence. Ash's Catfolk Scoundrel leans into Feint, Deception, diversions, social trickery, and making enemies easier to stab, hide from, or fireball. Tyler's Fetchling Mastermind turns Recall Knowledge into a combat engine, using information as a weapon and building toward automatic knowledge checks, scroll utility, and ranged support. Randall's Human Ruffian takes the direct approach with medium armor, intimidation, two-weapon tricks, gang-up tactics, and eventually debilitation options that make the whole party better at hurting things. Along the way, the hosts cover important rogue build choices including ancestry feats, racket features, armor considerations, weapon selection, class feats, general feats, and the sometimes painful reality that not every tempting rogue feat is worth taking. Twist the Knife gets called out as a trap compared to easier bleed options, while Gang Up, Analyze Weakness, Clever Gambit, Distracting Feint, Dazzling Diversion, Predictive Purchase, and racket-specific debilitations all get time in the spotlight. The episode closes by emphasizing that while these builds are combat-focused, rogues are not limited to combat. With their enormous number of skill feats and skill increases, rogues can be investigators, con artists, diplomats, criminals, spies, consultants, bullies, burglars, or social wrecking balls. In true RPGBOT fashion, the takeaway is clear: you can optimize the stabbing, but you still have plenty of room left to optimize the nonsense. Key Takeaways Pathfinder 2e rogues are skill monsters. They gain more skill increases and skill feats than almost anyone else, making them great in combat, exploration, social encounters, and weird niche problem-solving. Sneak Attack is the rogue's core damage feature, but it depends on the target being off-guard and on using the right kinds of weapons or attacks. Surprise Attack helps rogues get Sneak Attack early in combat by making creatures off-guard if the rogue rolls Deception or Stealth for initiative and acts before them. Rogue rackets dramatically change how the class plays. Scoundrels manipulate enemies with Feint and Deception, Masterminds weaponize Recall Knowledge, and Ruffians use intimidation, armor, and heavier weapons to bully the battlefield. Ash's Scoundrel build focuses on Charisma, Feint, Deception, and making enemies vulnerable through off-guard, dazzled, Reflex penalties, and tactical debilitations. Tyler's Mastermind build turns Recall Knowledge into a combat strategy, using it to make enemies off-guard, trigger extra movement, support allies, and set up extra damage through Analyze Weakness. Randall's Ruffian build leans into durability, melee pressure, medium armor, intimidation, Gang Up, and debilitation options that add weaknesses or penalties to enemies. Medium armor can work for a rogue, especially a Ruffian, but noisy armor is a bad idea if you still want to sneak. Weapon choice matters. Kukris, shortbows, agile and finesse weapons, and qualifying Ruffian weapons all interact differently with Sneak Attack and critical specialization. Analyze Weakness is a strong rogue feat for builds that can reliably identify enemies, adding extra precision-style damage when the rogue wants one hit to matter more. Gang Up is excellent for melee rogues because it makes off-guard easier to trigger without needing perfect flanking positions. Twist the Knife sounds fun, but the hosts flag it as a trap because weapon runes can often provide better bleed damage with less action cost. Debilitating Strike at level 9 is a major rogue power bump, letting Sneak Attack also impose conditions like speed penalties or enfeebled. Level 10 racket-specific debilitations make rogues even nastier. Masterminds gain support-focused options, Ruffians can add damage weaknesses or clumsy, and Scoundrels can shut down reactions or flanking. The builds in this episode are combat-focused, but rogues can easily become outstanding social and exploration characters because they have so many skill feats to spend. Rogues are not just sneaky stabbers. They can be detectives, con artists, crime lords, rich bullies, diplomats, vault testers, information brokers, and every other flavor of charming disaster. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Once the table finally escapes the opening chaos and cat crimes, Tyler, Randall, and Ash dive into Pathfinder 2e rogues, proving that the class is not just a sneaky knife gremlin. It is also a walking toolbox, a social menace, a battlefield problem, and so much more Show Notes This episode begins the RPGBOT.Podcast breakdown of Pathfinder 2e rogues, covering levels 1 through 10 and exploring how the class develops from nimble opportunist into a precision-damage nightmare with more skills than common sense. Tyler, Randall, and Ash each bring a different rogue racket to the table, with Tyler building a Mastermind, Ash building a Scoundrel, and Randall building a Ruffian. The conversation starts with the rogue's core identity: Sneak Attack, off-guard targets, excellent skills, strong Reflex saves, and the sheer absurdity of getting skill increases and skill feats constantly. The hosts explain how Pathfinder rogues differ from their 5e cousins, especially around precision damage, surprise attack, and how off-guard creates the opening rogues need to ruin someone's day. From there, the builds split into very different flavors of criminal excellence. Ash's Catfolk Scoundrel leans into Feint, Deception, diversions, social trickery, and making enemies easier to stab, hide from, or fireball. Tyler's Fetchling Mastermind turns Recall Knowledge into a combat engine, using information as a weapon and building toward automatic knowledge checks, scroll utility, and ranged support. Randall's Human Ruffian takes the direct approach with medium armor, intimidation, two-weapon tricks, gang-up tactics, and eventually debilitation options that make the whole party better at hurting things. Along the way, the hosts cover important rogue build choices including ancestry feats, racket features, armor considerations, weapon selection, class feats, general feats, and the sometimes painful reality that not every tempting rogue feat is worth taking. Twist the Knife gets called out as a trap compared to easier bleed options, while Gang Up, Analyze Weakness, Clever Gambit, Distracting Feint, Dazzling Diversion, Predictive Purchase, and racket-specific debilitations all get time in the spotlight. The episode closes by emphasizing that while these builds are combat-focused, rogues are not limited to combat. With their enormous number of skill feats and skill increases, rogues can be investigators, con artists, diplomats, criminals, spies, consultants, bullies, burglars, or social wrecking balls. In true RPGBOT fashion, the takeaway is clear: you can optimize the stabbing, but you still have plenty of room left to optimize the nonsense. Key Takeaways Pathfinder 2e rogues are skill monsters. They gain more skill increases and skill feats than almost anyone else, making them great in combat, exploration, social encounters, and weird niche problem-solving. Sneak Attack is the rogue's core damage feature, but it depends on the target being off-guard and on using the right kinds of weapons or attacks. Surprise Attack helps rogues get Sneak Attack early in combat by making creatures off-guard if the rogue rolls Deception or Stealth for initiative and acts before them. Rogue rackets dramatically change how the class plays. Scoundrels manipulate enemies with Feint and Deception, Masterminds weaponize Recall Knowledge, and Ruffians use intimidation, armor, and heavier weapons to bully the battlefield. Ash's Scoundrel build focuses on Charisma, Feint, Deception, and making enemies vulnerable through off-guard, dazzled, Reflex penalties, and tactical debilitations. Tyler's Mastermind build turns Recall Knowledge into a combat strategy, using it to make enemies off-guard, trigger extra movement, support allies, and set up extra damage through Analyze Weakness. Randall's Ruffian build leans into durability, melee pressure, medium armor, intimidation, Gang Up, and debilitation options that add weaknesses or penalties to enemies. Medium armor can work for a rogue, especially a Ruffian, but noisy armor is a bad idea if you still want to sneak. Weapon choice matters. Kukris, shortbows, agile and finesse weapons, and qualifying Ruffian weapons all interact differently with Sneak Attack and critical specialization. Analyze Weakness is a strong rogue feat for builds that can reliably identify enemies, adding extra precision-style damage when the rogue wants one hit to matter more. Gang Up is excellent for melee rogues because it makes off-guard easier to trigger without needing perfect flanking positions. Twist the Knife sounds fun, but the hosts flag it as a trap because weapon runes can often provide better bleed damage with less action cost. Debilitating Strike at level 9 is a major rogue power bump, letting Sneak Attack also impose conditions like speed penalties or enfeebled. Level 10 racket-specific debilitations make rogues even nastier. Masterminds gain support-focused options, Ruffians can add damage weaknesses or clumsy, and Scoundrels can shut down reactions or flanking. The builds in this episode are combat-focused, but rogues can easily become outstanding social and exploration characters because they have so many skill feats to spend. Rogues are not just sneaky stabbers. They can be detectives, con artists, crime lords, rich bullies, diplomats, vault testers, information brokers, and every other flavor of charming disaster. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome to Forgotten Odysseys, the game where surviving the Trojan War is apparently the easy part. Adam Bradford, also known as BadEye Adam, has created a MÖRK BORG-compatible Greek fantasy nightmare where the gods hate you, the sea hates you, the dice hate you, and sometimes your own party decides that prophecy is just a polite suggestion to commit murder. In this episode, the crew sets sail for home, immediately gets distracted by pork, insults a goddess, and proves that if Odysseus had access to a live Twitch chat, he probably would have died even faster. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/badeye/forgotten-odysseys Show Notes This week on the RPGBOT.Podcast, we dive into Forgotten Odysseys, the creation of Adam Bradford, also known as BadEye Adam, and currently funding on Kickstarter. Adam joins the show to talk about building a brutal, mythic Greek journey home from the Trojan War using the bones of MÖRK BORG, then Josh Simons of Broken Door Entertainment takes the helm for a live play demo that immediately proves why sailors should fear gods, storms, wild animals, and shirtless leadership. Adam walks through the inspirations behind the game, from The Odyssey and Bronze Age Greek culture to Blood of Zeus, 300, Xena, and the gloriously doomed charm of MÖRK BORG hacks. The result is a sword-and-sandals survival game where the goal is simple: get home. The problem is Eris, goddess of strife and chaos, who believes you cheated death at Troy and would very much like to correct that oversight. The episode also explores the game's seafaring tests, deadly mishaps, journey map, mythic art direction, character classes, boons, curses, legendary items, and armor system. Then the actual play begins, and the party creates Dome, Demos, and Dephobos, three heroes whose collective survival strategy includes playing "Yankee Doodle Dandy" on a lyre, hunting boars in a storm, yelling at divine fog, and ultimately fulfilling a betrayal prophecy with alarming efficiency. If you like Greek mythology, doomed sailors, lethal rules-light games, gorgeous art-heavy books, and tabletop sessions where a boar fight becomes the emotional centerpiece of the evening, this one is for you. Key Takeaways Forgotten Odysseys is Adam Bradford's mythic Greek, MÖRK BORG-compatible game about soldiers trying to survive the journey home after the Trojan War. The game is currently on Kickstarter and is published in partnership with Broken Door Entertainment. Adam wrote, illustrated, laid out, and designed the game, giving it a strong personal visual identity inspired by Greek myth, comics, public domain art, and brutal sword-and-sandals drama. The central premise is not "become a hero." It is "get home before the gods, monsters, sea, dice, or your friends kill you." Eris replaces Poseidon as the primary divine antagonist, hunting the characters because they survived when fate said they should have died. The game keeps the deadly, strange, art-heavy spirit of MÖRK BORG while adding Greek myth flavor, seafaring rules, Bronze Age gear, legendary items, boons, curses, and a journey map. Seafaring tests let everyone contribute to survival, whether they are rowing, navigating, inspiring the crew, helming the ship, or playing music to keep the oars in rhythm. Character creation leans into randomness, misery, and personality, which is how the table ends up with Dome, Demos, and Dephobos, three names that sound like they were cursed before the dice even hit the table. The live play shows off the system's fast combat, player-facing rolls, armor tiers, and high stakes, mostly through the sacred Greek tradition of nearly dying to pigs. Demos learns that boars are dangerous, Dephobos learns that prophecy is inconvenient, and Dome learns that leadership is easier when nobody questions why someone was stabbed and thrown into shallow water. The episode is a strong showcase for the game's tone: mythic, deadly, beautiful, ridiculous, and always one bad roll away from becoming a cautionary tale. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome to Forgotten Odysseys, the game where surviving the Trojan War is apparently the easy part. Adam Bradford, also known as BadEye Adam, has created a MÖRK BORG-compatible Greek fantasy nightmare where the gods hate you, the sea hates you, the dice hate you, and sometimes your own party decides that prophecy is just a polite suggestion to commit murder. In this episode, the crew sets sail for home, immediately gets distracted by pork, insults a goddess, and proves that if Odysseus had access to a live Twitch chat, he probably would have died even faster. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/badeye/forgotten-odysseys Show Notes This week on the RPGBOT.Podcast, we dive into Forgotten Odysseys, the creation of Adam Bradford, also known as BadEye Adam, and currently funding on Kickstarter. Adam joins the show to talk about building a brutal, mythic Greek journey home from the Trojan War using the bones of MÖRK BORG, then Josh Simons of Broken Door Entertainment takes the helm for a live play demo that immediately proves why sailors should fear gods, storms, wild animals, and shirtless leadership. Adam walks through the inspirations behind the game, from The Odyssey and Bronze Age Greek culture to Blood of Zeus, 300, Xena, and the gloriously doomed charm of MÖRK BORG hacks. The result is a sword-and-sandals survival game where the goal is simple: get home. The problem is Eris, goddess of strife and chaos, who believes you cheated death at Troy and would very much like to correct that oversight. The episode also explores the game's seafaring tests, deadly mishaps, journey map, mythic art direction, character classes, boons, curses, legendary items, and armor system. Then the actual play begins, and the party creates Dome, Demos, and Dephobos, three heroes whose collective survival strategy includes playing "Yankee Doodle Dandy" on a lyre, hunting boars in a storm, yelling at divine fog, and ultimately fulfilling a betrayal prophecy with alarming efficiency. If you like Greek mythology, doomed sailors, lethal rules-light games, gorgeous art-heavy books, and tabletop sessions where a boar fight becomes the emotional centerpiece of the evening, this one is for you. Key Takeaways Forgotten Odysseys is Adam Bradford's mythic Greek, MÖRK BORG-compatible game about soldiers trying to survive the journey home after the Trojan War. The game is currently on Kickstarter and is published in partnership with Broken Door Entertainment. Adam wrote, illustrated, laid out, and designed the game, giving it a strong personal visual identity inspired by Greek myth, comics, public domain art, and brutal sword-and-sandals drama. The central premise is not "become a hero." It is "get home before the gods, monsters, sea, dice, or your friends kill you." Eris replaces Poseidon as the primary divine antagonist, hunting the characters because they survived when fate said they should have died. The game keeps the deadly, strange, art-heavy spirit of MÖRK BORG while adding Greek myth flavor, seafaring rules, Bronze Age gear, legendary items, boons, curses, and a journey map. Seafaring tests let everyone contribute to survival, whether they are rowing, navigating, inspiring the crew, helming the ship, or playing music to keep the oars in rhythm. Character creation leans into randomness, misery, and personality, which is how the table ends up with Dome, Demos, and Dephobos, three names that sound like they were cursed before the dice even hit the table. The live play shows off the system's fast combat, player-facing rolls, armor tiers, and high stakes, mostly through the sacred Greek tradition of nearly dying to pigs. Demos learns that boars are dangerous, Dephobos learns that prophecy is inconvenient, and Dome learns that leadership is easier when nobody questions why someone was stabbed and thrown into shallow water. The episode is a strong showcase for the game's tone: mythic, deadly, beautiful, ridiculous, and always one bad roll away from becoming a cautionary tale. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome to the Abyss, the multiverse's least relaxing vacation destination, where every layer is somehow worse than the last, the locals are made of teeth and bad decisions, and the gift shop only sells trauma. This week on the RPGBOT.Podcast, we descend into the infinite chaos of demonic nonsense to ask the important questions: how do you survive a plane that actively hates zoning laws, why are demon lords like this, and at what point does a heroic expedition become an HR violation with initiative rolls? Show Notes This week, the RPGBOT.Podcast heads screaming into the Abyss, home of demons, demon lords, infinite layers, and the kind of cosmic chaos that makes ordinary campaign planning look like a polite neighborhood association meeting. The hosts explore what makes the Abyss such a dangerous and compelling place for tabletop adventures, from its shifting geography and endless hordes to the major powers that call it home. Along the way, we look at how different games and editions have handled demonic lore, including DnD 5e, classic 3.5 material, and Pathfinder's take on demon lords, qlippoth, and the Outer Rifts. It is a tour through madness, violence, temptation, and worldbuilding opportunities, with just enough useful advice to make you think visiting the Abyss might be survivable. It is not. But it might make a fantastic campaign arc. Whether you need a terrifying destination, a villainous power structure, a planar survival nightmare, or just a place where every bad idea gets promoted to management, the Abyss is ready to ruin your party's day in spectacular fashion. DnD 5e 2014 Dungeon Master's Guide (affiliate link) Monsters of the Multiverse (affiliate link) 3.5 Expedition to the Demonweb Pits (affiliate link) Pathfinder Wiki Demon Lords Qlippoth Outer Rifts Key Takeaways The Abyss is more than just Hell with worse branding. It is chaos given geography, full of infinite layers, unstable rules, and creatures that treat morality like an optional splatbook. Demons work best when they feel unpredictable, destructive, and hungry for escalation. Devils make contracts. Demons kick in the door, eat the contract, and set the room on fire. Demon lords are excellent campaign villains because they combine cosmic power, personal obsession, and the emotional stability of a cursed chainsaw. The Abyss gives DMs a huge toolbox for adventure design: survival horror, planar exploration, corruption arcs, cult plots, boss fights, doomed expeditions, and the classic question of why did we open that portal? Older DnD material and Pathfinder lore both offer rich inspiration, especially if you want the Abyss to feel bigger, stranger, and more awful than just a monster closet with lava. Qlippoth and other ancient horrors are useful when you want to remind players that demons are not necessarily the bottom of the cosmic barrel. Sometimes the barrel has teeth underneath it. The best Abyss adventures should feel dangerous before initiative is rolled. The plane itself should be part of the threat, not just the room where the demons are standing. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome to the Abyss, the multiverse's least relaxing vacation destination, where every layer is somehow worse than the last, the locals are made of teeth and bad decisions, and the gift shop only sells trauma. This week on the RPGBOT.Podcast, we descend into the infinite chaos of demonic nonsense to ask the important questions: how do you survive a plane that actively hates zoning laws, why are demon lords like this, and at what point does a heroic expedition become an HR violation with initiative rolls? Show Notes This week, the RPGBOT.Podcast heads screaming into the Abyss, home of demons, demon lords, infinite layers, and the kind of cosmic chaos that makes ordinary campaign planning look like a polite neighborhood association meeting. The hosts explore what makes the Abyss such a dangerous and compelling place for tabletop adventures, from its shifting geography and endless hordes to the major powers that call it home. Along the way, we look at how different games and editions have handled demonic lore, including DnD 5e, classic 3.5 material, and Pathfinder's take on demon lords, qlippoth, and the Outer Rifts. It is a tour through madness, violence, temptation, and worldbuilding opportunities, with just enough useful advice to make you think visiting the Abyss might be survivable. It is not. But it might make a fantastic campaign arc. Whether you need a terrifying destination, a villainous power structure, a planar survival nightmare, or just a place where every bad idea gets promoted to management, the Abyss is ready to ruin your party's day in spectacular fashion. DnD 5e 2014 Dungeon Master's Guide (affiliate link) Monsters of the Multiverse (affiliate link) 3.5 Expedition to the Demonweb Pits (affiliate link) Pathfinder Wiki Demon Lords Qlippoth Outer Rifts Key Takeaways The Abyss is more than just Hell with worse branding. It is chaos given geography, full of infinite layers, unstable rules, and creatures that treat morality like an optional splatbook. Demons work best when they feel unpredictable, destructive, and hungry for escalation. Devils make contracts. Demons kick in the door, eat the contract, and set the room on fire. Demon lords are excellent campaign villains because they combine cosmic power, personal obsession, and the emotional stability of a cursed chainsaw. The Abyss gives DMs a huge toolbox for adventure design: survival horror, planar exploration, corruption arcs, cult plots, boss fights, doomed expeditions, and the classic question of why did we open that portal? Older DnD material and Pathfinder lore both offer rich inspiration, especially if you want the Abyss to feel bigger, stranger, and more awful than just a monster closet with lava. Qlippoth and other ancient horrors are useful when you want to remind players that demons are not necessarily the bottom of the cosmic barrel. Sometimes the barrel has teeth underneath it. The best Abyss adventures should feel dangerous before initiative is rolled. The plane itself should be part of the threat, not just the room where the demons are standing. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome to Part 4 of our Ravenloft: The Horrors Within review, where the real horror isn't Strahd. It's Ash's campaign. In the span of ten minutes, his players accidentally created Baba Yaga, nearly invented a magical nuclear weapon, tried to break the multiverse "just to see what happens," and immediately asked if they could automate it with a Rube Goldberg machine. At this point, the Dark Powers aren't tormenting the players. They're trying to survive them. Show Notes We wrap up our four-part review of Ravenloft: The Horrors Within by touring the remaining Domains of Dread, digging into the new monsters and NPCs, exploring haunted Bastions, and deciding whether Wizards of the Coast finally delivered the definitive Ravenloft sourcebook. Before the review even begins, Ash recounts the latest catastrophes from his home Ravenloft campaign. His players accidentally elevate a coven of hags into a new Baba Yaga, nearly tear open reality with artifacts capable of destroying demiplanes, and somehow conclude that the obvious solution is building a magical doomsday device. As always, the greatest threat to Ravenloft isn't the Dark Lords. It's the player characters. The panel finishes its tour of the remaining Domains of Dread, highlighting favorites like the haunted countryside of Mordent, Arthurian-inspired Shadowlands, Lord Soth's Sythicus, the folk-horror nightmare of Tepest, and the deadly jungle hunts of Valachan. Each domain receives new maps, campaign outlines, adventure hooks, and fully realized Dark Lord stat blocks that make them dramatically easier to run than previous editions. Attention then shifts to the new DM tools. Haunted Bastions become an instant favorite, adding supernatural events, cursed facilities, and even Backrooms-inspired liminal spaces to the 2024 Bastion system. The group also praises the new patron mechanics, expanded horror guidance, and dozens of flavorful campaign-building resources for Dungeon Masters. The bestiary proves equally impressive. New horrors range from Lovecraftian monstrosities and terrifying Relentless Killers to updated versions of classic Ravenloft creatures like the Dullahan and Grimishkas. Several monsters introduce brutal mechanics involving exhaustion, possession, regeneration, and instant death, giving horror encounters a unique identity beyond simply dealing more damage. Finally, the hosts deliver their verdict on the book. While the player-facing subclasses receive mixed reviews throughout the series, everyone agrees that The Horrors Within is a massive upgrade for Dungeon Masters. Between expanded lore, stronger adventures, memorable monsters, and fully developed Domains of Dread, this may be the best Ravenloft campaign resource Wizards has published for Fifth Edition. Ravenloft: The Horrors Within (affiliate link) RPGBOT.store - Pish Pash, My Memory is Trash! Other Stuff Rikki Tikki Tavi Roxane but it gets faster Spirited Away Content from RPGBOT.net DnD 5e Dark Gifts Guide Key Takeaways Ash's home campaign continues to prove that players are more dangerous than any Dark Lord. The remaining Domains of Dread receive substantial expansions with maps, adventures, and campaign frameworks. Shadowlands, Tepest, Mordent, and Valachan each offer unique horror genres beyond gothic vampires. Haunted Bastions are one of the most creative additions to the 2024 Bastion system. The liminal-space Bastion facility is basically the Backrooms for D&D. The bestiary introduces memorable new horrors, especially the Relentless Killer variants. Updated classic monsters receive more interesting mechanics while remaining faithful to their original themes. Named NPCs like Van Richten, Ez, Madame Eva, and the Weathermay-Foxgrove twins finally receive dedicated stat blocks. The book is packed with campaign hooks, DM tools, and adventure ideas that make Ravenloft easier than ever to run. Final verdict: player options are somewhat uneven, but for Dungeon Masters this is an outstanding sourcebook and one of the strongest setting books Wizards has released for the 2024 rules. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Welcome to Part 4 of our Ravenloft: The Horrors Within review, where the real horror isn't Strahd. It's Ash's campaign. In the span of ten minutes, his players accidentally created Baba Yaga, nearly invented a magical nuclear weapon, tried to break the multiverse "just to see what happens," and immediately asked if they could automate it with a Rube Goldberg machine. At this point, the Dark Powers aren't tormenting the players. They're trying to survive them. Show Notes We wrap up our four-part review of Ravenloft: The Horrors Within by touring the remaining Domains of Dread, digging into the new monsters and NPCs, exploring haunted Bastions, and deciding whether Wizards of the Coast finally delivered the definitive Ravenloft sourcebook. Before the review even begins, Ash recounts the latest catastrophes from his home Ravenloft campaign. His players accidentally elevate a coven of hags into a new Baba Yaga, nearly tear open reality with artifacts capable of destroying demiplanes, and somehow conclude that the obvious solution is building a magical doomsday device. As always, the greatest threat to Ravenloft isn't the Dark Lords. It's the player characters. The panel finishes its tour of the remaining Domains of Dread, highlighting favorites like the haunted countryside of Mordent, Arthurian-inspired Shadowlands, Lord Soth's Sythicus, the folk-horror nightmare of Tepest, and the deadly jungle hunts of Valachan. Each domain receives new maps, campaign outlines, adventure hooks, and fully realized Dark Lord stat blocks that make them dramatically easier to run than previous editions. Attention then shifts to the new DM tools. Haunted Bastions become an instant favorite, adding supernatural events, cursed facilities, and even Backrooms-inspired liminal spaces to the 2024 Bastion system. The group also praises the new patron mechanics, expanded horror guidance, and dozens of flavorful campaign-building resources for Dungeon Masters. The bestiary proves equally impressive. New horrors range from Lovecraftian monstrosities and terrifying Relentless Killers to updated versions of classic Ravenloft creatures like the Dullahan and Grimishkas. Several monsters introduce brutal mechanics involving exhaustion, possession, regeneration, and instant death, giving horror encounters a unique identity beyond simply dealing more damage. Finally, the hosts deliver their verdict on the book. While the player-facing subclasses receive mixed reviews throughout the series, everyone agrees that The Horrors Within is a massive upgrade for Dungeon Masters. Between expanded lore, stronger adventures, memorable monsters, and fully developed Domains of Dread, this may be the best Ravenloft campaign resource Wizards has published for Fifth Edition. Ravenloft: The Horrors Within (affiliate link) RPGBOT.store - Pish Pash, My Memory is Trash! Other Stuff Rikki Tikki Tavi Roxane but it gets faster Spirited Away Content from RPGBOT.net DnD 5e Dark Gifts Guide Key Takeaways Ash's home campaign continues to prove that players are more dangerous than any Dark Lord. The remaining Domains of Dread receive substantial expansions with maps, adventures, and campaign frameworks. Shadowlands, Tepest, Mordent, and Valachan each offer unique horror genres beyond gothic vampires. Haunted Bastions are one of the most creative additions to the 2024 Bastion system. The liminal-space Bastion facility is basically the Backrooms for D&D. The bestiary introduces memorable new horrors, especially the Relentless Killer variants. Updated classic monsters receive more interesting mechanics while remaining faithful to their original themes. Named NPCs like Van Richten, Ez, Madame Eva, and the Weathermay-Foxgrove twins finally receive dedicated stat blocks. The book is packed with campaign hooks, DM tools, and adventure ideas that make Ravenloft easier than ever to run. Final verdict: player options are somewhat uneven, but for Dungeon Masters this is an outstanding sourcebook and one of the strongest setting books Wizards has released for the 2024 rules. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Ravenloft is a setting built on fear, tragedy, and impossible choices. Naturally, we spent the first ten minutes arguing about whether Florida is its own Domain of Dread, listening to Ash tell a story about getting magically demoted from noble to peasant, and debating whether "lofting ravens" is a real phrase. Honestly, the Dark Powers couldn't have written a better introduction. Show Notes In Part 3 of our review of Ravenloft: The Horrors Within, we finally leave the player options behind and dive into the heart of the setting itself. Wizards of the Coast dramatically expands the Domains of Dread, providing campaign frameworks, detailed gazetteers, new maps, Dark Lord stat blocks, horror advice, Tarokka options, and enough adventure hooks to keep a party terrified for months. We begin by exploring the overall structure of the book and immediately appreciate how much more usable it is than Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft. Every major domain now includes lore, locations, horror themes, campaign outlines, one-shot adventures, and, perhaps most importantly, fully realized stat blocks for the Dark Lords themselves. No more "just use the Spy stat block." From Barovia to Lamordia, we tour some of Ravenloft's most iconic locations. We revisit Strahd's eternal torment, explore the political nightmare of Borca, marvel at Darkon's crumbling reality, survive Falkovnia's endless zombie siege, admire Har'Akir's gorgeous redesign, and gush over Lamordia's expanded support. Along the way we discover that some Domains received spectacular glow-ups while others inspired... spirited debate. Not every addition lands equally. The panel spends considerable time discussing Innsmouth and Cthulhu's inclusion, questioning whether cosmic horror fits Ravenloft's core theme of ironic punishment and personal damnation. The conversation turns into an entertaining deep dive on what actually makes a Dark Lord compelling and why some monsters work better as unknowable forces than boss encounters. By the end of the episode, one thing is clear: even with a few controversial choices, The Horrors Within dramatically improves Ravenloft as a campaign setting. Better maps, better adventures, better stat blocks, and substantially more support make this feel like the definitive version of the Domains of Dread. Key Takeaways The setting chapters are the standout portion of the book. Every major Domain of Dread receives significantly expanded support compared to Van Richten's Guide. Every major Dark Lord finally has a unique stat block worthy of an epic confrontation. New maps, campaign outlines, and one-shot adventures make the book far easier to run. Tarokka cards now tie directly into individual Domains and Dark Lords, adding flavorful campaign tools. Horror guidance remains solid, especially for GMs running gothic horror for the first time. Several redesigned Domains, especially Har'Akir and Lamordia, receive high praise for their presentation and atmosphere. Innsmouth and Cthulhu spark the episode's biggest debate, with questions about whether cosmic horror belongs in Ravenloft's established mythology. Lamordia emerges as one of the panel's favorite sections thanks to its expanded lore, updated locations, and memorable adventure hooks. Despite a handful of criticisms, the group considers the setting material a substantial improvement over previous Ravenloft sourcebooks. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Ravenloft is a setting built on fear, tragedy, and impossible choices. Naturally, we spent the first ten minutes arguing about whether Florida is its own Domain of Dread, listening to Ash tell a story about getting magically demoted from noble to peasant, and debating whether "lofting ravens" is a real phrase. Honestly, the Dark Powers couldn't have written a better introduction. Show Notes In Part 3 of our review of Ravenloft: The Horrors Within, we finally leave the player options behind and dive into the heart of the setting itself. Wizards of the Coast dramatically expands the Domains of Dread, providing campaign frameworks, detailed gazetteers, new maps, Dark Lord stat blocks, horror advice, Tarokka options, and enough adventure hooks to keep a party terrified for months. We begin by exploring the overall structure of the book and immediately appreciate how much more usable it is than Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft. Every major domain now includes lore, locations, horror themes, campaign outlines, one-shot adventures, and, perhaps most importantly, fully realized stat blocks for the Dark Lords themselves. No more "just use the Spy stat block." From Barovia to Lamordia, we tour some of Ravenloft's most iconic locations. We revisit Strahd's eternal torment, explore the political nightmare of Borca, marvel at Darkon's crumbling reality, survive Falkovnia's endless zombie siege, admire Har'Akir's gorgeous redesign, and gush over Lamordia's expanded support. Along the way we discover that some Domains received spectacular glow-ups while others inspired... spirited debate. Not every addition lands equally. The panel spends considerable time discussing Innsmouth and Cthulhu's inclusion, questioning whether cosmic horror fits Ravenloft's core theme of ironic punishment and personal damnation. The conversation turns into an entertaining deep dive on what actually makes a Dark Lord compelling and why some monsters work better as unknowable forces than boss encounters. By the end of the episode, one thing is clear: even with a few controversial choices, The Horrors Within dramatically improves Ravenloft as a campaign setting. Better maps, better adventures, better stat blocks, and substantially more support make this feel like the definitive version of the Domains of Dread. Key Takeaways The setting chapters are the standout portion of the book. Every major Domain of Dread receives significantly expanded support compared to Van Richten's Guide. Every major Dark Lord finally has a unique stat block worthy of an epic confrontation. New maps, campaign outlines, and one-shot adventures make the book far easier to run. Tarokka cards now tie directly into individual Domains and Dark Lords, adding flavorful campaign tools. Horror guidance remains solid, especially for GMs running gothic horror for the first time. Several redesigned Domains, especially Har'Akir and Lamordia, receive high praise for their presentation and atmosphere. Innsmouth and Cthulhu spark the episode's biggest debate, with questions about whether cosmic horror belongs in Ravenloft's established mythology. Lamordia emerges as one of the panel's favorite sections thanks to its expanded lore, updated locations, and memorable adventure hooks. Despite a handful of criticisms, the group considers the setting material a substantial improvement over previous Ravenloft sourcebooks. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
So today's episode is about the Help action, the mechanic that exists so your party can finally contribute after rolling three consecutive natural 2s. We'll answer life's toughest questions: Is sacrificing your turn to give someone advantage actually worth it? Can an owl legally become the MVP of every combat? And how many class features can be stacked before your DM quietly starts targeting the familiar instead? Grab your emotional support Help action, because we're about to optimize teamwork so hard your rogue might actually say 'thanks.' Show Notes The Help action looks simple on paper: spend your action so someone else can do better. In practice, it's one of the most misunderstood and surprisingly powerful mechanics in D&D 5e. This week we dive into every angle of helping, from the basic combat rules to the mountain of class features, feats, spells, familiars, summons, and character builds that can turn a supporting role into the strongest play at the table. Along the way we discuss when giving advantage is mathematically better than attacking yourself, which subclasses excel at battlefield support, why certain familiars have become infamous for abusing the Help action, and how teamwork changes depending on your party composition. Whether you're building a dedicated support character or just trying to squeeze more value out of your turn, we break down when helping is heroic, when it's optimal, and when you're just enabling the barbarian's bad decisions. As always, expect plenty of rules discussion, optimization advice, friendly arguments, and a few detours into the weird corners of D&D design. Key Takeaways The Help action is stronger than many players realize. Giving another character advantage is often worth more than making a mediocre attack yourself. Action economy matters. A Help action isn't free. The value depends on what you're giving up and what your ally gains in return. Advantage scales with powerful attacks. Helping a rogue land Sneak Attack or a paladin land a massive Smite is often far more valuable than helping someone make a routine weapon attack. Familiars are support superstars. Features like Find Familiar, particularly with mobile options such as owls, can generate enormous tactical value by delivering Help while staying relatively safe. Some classes are built to support. Bards, certain Clerics, Battle Masters, Mastermind Rogues, and other support-focused subclasses have numerous ways to improve allies beyond simply casting buffs. Positioning is everything. The best support characters understand movement, sight lines, opportunity attacks, and initiative order just as much as damage optimization. Support isn't passive play. A well-played support character constantly makes tactical decisions that influence the entire battlefield. Not every Help action is a good Help action. Sometimes attacking, casting a spell, controlling the battlefield, or eliminating a threat is the better choice. Build synergy beats individual optimization. Characters designed to complement each other routinely outperform groups built around individual damage numbers. Helping extends beyond combat. Outside encounters, the Help action can dramatically improve skill checks when the assisting character can meaningfully contribute. Know your table. Some groups naturally coordinate tactics, while others benefit from discussing teamwork before combat begins. The best support players make everyone else look awesome. Good teamwork often creates the most memorable moments in a campaign, even if the support character never lands the finishing blow. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
The real horror in Ravenloft wasn't ghosts, vampires, or eldritch patrons. It was Riverside updating its interface five minutes before recording. Suddenly the buttons moved, the fonts shrank every time someone mentioned the layout, and Tyler entered a state of existential panic usually reserved for failed concentration checks. By the end of the night, we had learned two important lessons. First, change is terrifying. Second, apparently none of us can remember how to spell Ricky-Ticky-Tavi. Show Notes In Part 2 of our review of Ravenloft: The Horrors Within, we tackled the remaining subclasses and discovered that the second half of the book delivered some of the strongest player options in the entire release. Between ghost-powered rogues, shadow puppies, and undead warlocks, there was plenty to like. We started with the Phantom Rogue and found ourselves impressed by how well the subclass grows over time. While the early levels still feel sparse, Tokens of the Departed remains one of the coolest thematic mechanics in the game. Collecting fragments of souls and consulting them for answers creates exactly the kind of spooky roleplaying we want from Ravenloft. Next came Shadow Sorcery, and to everyone's relief, the beloved Hound of Ill Omen survived the transition to 5.5. The shadow puppy is back, the subclass still delivers incredible battlefield control, and several improvements make it one of the standout options in the book. This may finally be proof that Wizards remembers sorcerers are allowed to have nice things. We wrapped up with the Undead Patron Warlock, which continues to deliver strong flavor and solid mechanics. Form of Dread remains fantastic, and the subclass still excels at making enemies regret standing anywhere near the warlock. Meanwhile, we somehow spent far too much time debating damage dice, exhaustion mechanics, and whether exploding yourself counts as a valid combat strategy. By the end of the review, we came away feeling far more positive about the second half of the book than the first. Not every option is perfect, but there are several subclasses here we'd happily bring to a full campaign. Assuming, of course, that the recording software doesn't change its layout again first. Links Ravenloft: The Horrors Within (affiliate link) RPGBOT.store - Pish Pash, My Memory is Trash! Other Stuff Rikki Tikki Tavi Roxane but it gets faster Spirited Away Content from RPGBOT.net DnD 5e Dark Gifts Guide Key Takeaways Phantom Rogue starts slowly but becomes increasingly interesting at higher levels. Tokens of the Departed remains one of the most flavorful mechanics in the game. Shadow Sorcery successfully preserved the fan-favorite Hound of Ill Omen. The shadow puppy is still the best boy. Shadow Sorcerer is one of the biggest winners in the book. Undead Patron Warlock retains its strong theme and useful combat tools. Form of Dread continues to be one of the coolest transformation abilities available to warlocks. Several subclasses benefited from updates that fixed earlier Unearthed Arcana concerns. The second half of the book contains more hits than misses. Software updates remain more frightening than anything found in Ravenloft. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Ravenloft is supposed to be full of gothic horror, tragic villains, and creeping dread. Instead, we somehow spent twenty minutes imagining a Midwestern Strahd saying You betcha before drinking your blood, arguing about wet burritos, and debating whether North Dakota counts as a real place. By the time we actually opened the book, the greatest horror wasn't the Dark Powers. It was realizing that someone somewhere willingly ordered a hot wet beef sandwich. Sponsor Spotlight: Mithos This episode is sponsored by Mithos, a modular, system-agnostic digital toolkit designed to make life easier for Game Masters. With customizable layouts, built-in player views, fog of war support, encounter tools, and an active community sharing content, Mithos helps keep your game running smoothly without juggling a dozen browser tabs. Whether you're running Dungeons & Dragons at a convention, Call of Cthulhu in a cabin, or your favorite indie RPG at home, Mithos puts everything you need in one place. Best of all, there are no subscriptions and no internet connection required. Learn more at rpgbot.net/mithos. Show Notes We finally returned to Ravenloft with The Horrors Within and dug into the new player options from Wizards of the Coast. Along the way we examined the subclasses, talked about what survived from the Unearthed Arcana playtest, and debated whether some of the changes actually improved the designs or simply made them safer. The Reanimator Artificer immediately caught our attention with its wonderfully creepy flavor. We loved the concept of Frankensteining together an undead companion and modifying it over time, even if the final numbers often felt disappointingly conservative. The subclass oozes atmosphere, but several features left us wishing Wizards had trusted the design enough to let it hit a little harder. The College of Spirits Bard received some welcome improvements from the playtest version. Moving the random spirit effects away from mandatory immediate use made the subclass far more practical, and controlled channeling solved many of the frustrations we had previously identified. This version finally delivers on the fantasy of consulting strange entities from beyond without constantly fighting against the mechanics. We also revisited the Grave Domain Cleric and looked at the redesigned Path to the Grave. While the old version was undeniably flashier, the new implementation is much easier to use in any party composition. It may not create those huge cinematic damage spikes anymore, but it provides reliable support every time it comes online. As always, our review quickly spiraled into side discussions involving Call of Cthulhu, sturgeon festivals, Midwestern rivalries, taxes, and the eternal mystery of why so many fantasy character illustrations are suspiciously attractive. That's just another day at the RPGBOT.Podcast. Key Takeaways Ravenloft: The Horrors Within delivers strong gothic flavor and some excellent artwork. The Reanimator Artificer has fantastic thematic design but several mechanics feel overly cautious. Lightning interactions with the undead companion create some amusing and creative tactics. College of Spirits Bard benefited significantly from feedback and is much easier to play effectively. Controlled Channeling fixes many of the frustrations from the Unearthed Arcana version. Grave Domain Cleric lost some of its explosive potential but gained consistency. The revised Path to the Grave works better across a wider variety of party compositions. Several subclasses showcase great ideas that feel slightly undertuned. Flavor and atmosphere are consistently strong throughout the book. No matter how serious the subject matter becomes, the conversation will eventually derail into food arguments, regional insults, or bizarre fantasy accents. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Warlocks are the only class where the phrase "I signed a terrible contract and somehow came out ahead" counts as a character concept. By level 20, your patron has become equal parts sugar daddy, eldritch therapist, and extended warranty scammer. Somewhere between your third Eldritch Invocation and your fourth existential crisis, you stop asking whether the power is worth the cost and start asking if your soul came with roadside assistance. Show Notes In the second half of the Warlock deep dive, we continue advancing our example characters from level 5 all the way to level 20, exploring how the class evolves from a reliable blaster into one of the most customizable spellcasters in 2014 D&D 5e. Along the way we discuss new spell options, increasingly specialized Eldritch Invocations, Pact Boon upgrades, and the always-interesting challenge of squeezing maximum value out of a very limited number of spell slots. As the builds mature, we compare different approaches to survivability, damage output, and utility. The conversation highlights how Warlocks reward careful planning while still leaving plenty of room for weird and thematic choices. Whether you're building a Hexblade, Fiend, or something stranger, the class offers countless ways to personalize your character. Naturally, no discussion of Warlocks would be complete without jokes about selling your soul, suspicious contracts, and patrons who definitely read the fine print that you ignored. Between optimization advice and increasingly ridiculous examples, we discover that eldritch power and bad life decisions make an excellent combination. Key Takeaways Level 5 is a major power spike thanks to 3rd-level spells and additional Eldritch Invocation options. Invocations continue to define a Warlock's identity throughout higher levels. Pact Boons and invocation choices can dramatically change how two Warlocks of the same subclass play. Short rests remain essential because Pact Magic depends heavily on recovering spell slots frequently. Gift of the Ever-Living Ones and other defensive options can greatly improve survivability. Blade-focused builds use options like Thirsting Blade to keep pace with martial classes. Mystic Arcanum provides access to powerful high-level spells without changing the core Pact Magic system. Warlocks excel when players specialize rather than trying to do everything at once. The class rewards planning and understanding how individual features interact. Flavor and mechanics blend exceptionally well, making Warlocks one of the most thematic classes in 5e. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
The Plane of Water episode started exactly how you'd expect an episode about endless oceans to start: with stock prices, GTA 6 rumors, GameStop drama, and Randall suggesting you could solve inflation by storing barrels of oil in your apartment. Eventually everyone remembered there was supposed to be a podcast, which unfortunately meant confronting Ash's greatest weakness: deep water. What followed was less a lore episode and more a two-hour intervention where Tyler discovered underwater spiders exist, Randall weaponized ocean facts, and Ash spent the entire recording questioning every life choice that led him to this point. Somewhere beneath all the existential dread, there was also a Plane of Water. Show Notes This week we dove into one of the most intimidating locations in fantasy gaming: the Plane of Water. Despite containing an infinite amount of something every living creature needs, none of us sounded particularly excited to visit. We explored how the Plane of Water differs between Dungeons & Dragons and Pathfinder, from endless oceans and violent storms to strange underwater civilizations and terrifying megafauna. Along the way, we examined water genies, krakens, mysterious cities, giant jellyfish stretching across entire planes, and even an anglerfish so enormous that someone thought building a city on its back was a good idea. Pathfinder's version introduced even stranger concepts, including underwater suns, spheres filled with mysterious civilizations, and the return of elemental forces that literally control the tides. As expected, Ash spent much of the episode reliving childhood trauma and explaining why the ocean is secretly the most horrifying place imaginable. Tyler accidentally made things worse by introducing underwater spiders, while Randall enthusiastically contributed increasingly disturbing facts about deep-sea pressure, giant creatures, and dream-fueled tsunami nightmares. By the end, we learned that the Plane of Water contains incredible adventure opportunities, beautiful locations, and fascinating lore. We also learned that Ash would still rather spend a weekend in Hell. Based on the episode transcript Key Takeaways The Plane of Water in D&D is an endless ocean punctuated by occasional islands, violent storms, and regions ranging from sunlit seas to terrifying depths. Pathfinder's Plane of Water differs significantly, featuring a spherical structure, strange environmental effects, and unusual landmarks. Water genies and merfolk civilizations provide opportunities for diplomacy and exploration rather than constant combat. Krakens, brine dragons, and other aquatic monsters make the plane dangerous, but many creatures are simply focused on surviving in their own environment. Several bizarre megafauna inhabit Pathfinder's version of the plane, including continent-sized jellyfish and city-carrying anglerfish. Travel to the plane is possible through spells, portals, storms, and occasionally terrible luck. The Plane of Water offers strong inspiration for survival adventures, nautical campaigns, and cosmic horror themes. Despite its beauty and rich lore, at least one member of the cast would prefer literally any other destination. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Nobody expected the second half of the cleric episode to begin with a discussion about wolves conducting hate crimes against coyotes, crows acting as aerial bounty hunters, and the lasting trauma of Game of Thrones season eight. Somehow this naturally transitioned into Pathfinder clerics, giant dragon towers, vampire bat transformations, and a godless revolutionary whose greatest enemy remains organized religion. In hindsight, this was probably the only possible outcome. Show Notes In the second half of our Pathfinder 2e Cleric build series, we advanced our morally questionable holy figures from level 11 all the way to 20. Before we even reached the introduction, however, we somehow found ourselves discussing wolf vendettas, crow conspiracies, Game of Thrones, British pronunciation crimes, and Pulp Fiction-inspired monologues. Naturally, this was exactly the kind of preparation required for high-level clerics. Randall returned with his godless anti-religious war priest, continuing his crusade to dismantle divine authority while simultaneously benefiting from divine magic. The contradictions only made the character stronger. Ash continued building a dragon-obsessed kobold servant of Dahak, leaning heavily into domains, summoning magic, and draconic heritage feats. Tyler doubled down on his undead survival machine, creating a cleric who would rather become increasingly horrifying than ever experience death again. As the builds progressed, the characters became increasingly absurd. Randall evolved into a social revolutionary capable of literally preaching atheism to enemies. Ash transformed into a majestic kobold empowered by dragons and armed with enough fire to solve nearly any problem. Tyler embraced his inner vampire, eventually turning into a bat, draining enemies, and becoming nearly impossible to kill. High-level spells stole much of the spotlight. Summoning dragons, collapsing enemies with Implosion, unleashing Massacre, and transforming into avatars of divine power all showcased just how spectacular Pathfinder's spellcasters become in the late game. Meanwhile, Randall's philosophy remained unchanged: peace is important, and anyone who disagrees can discuss it with the business end of a glaive. By the time we reached level 20, our collection of short kings had somehow become terrifying demigods. None of them were remotely good people, but they were certainly memorable clerics. Key Takeaways Levels 11 through 20 dramatically increase a cleric's power through doctrines, master spellcasting, and powerful class feats. High-rank divine spells provide some of the most cinematic effects in Pathfinder 2e. Harm-focused builds can become incredibly durable through self-healing and defensive feats. Domain spells continue to scale well into the highest levels of play. Heritage feats can dramatically shape a character's identity and capabilities. Avatar provides one of the most flavorful capstone spells available to divine casters. Additional 10th-rank spell slots are difficult to pass up at level 20. Warpriests gain survivability but still lag behind dedicated martial classes in weapon proficiency. Pathfinder 2e offers many ways to support unusual character concepts, including technically illegal godless clerics. Team Fun Size successfully evolved from weird clerics into full-blown nightmares for any GM. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Every Warlock player starts with the same innocent thought: I just want a mysterious patron and some spooky magic. Three hours later you're reading invocation combinations like you're optimizing a tax return and trying to explain to the party why your character absolutely needed a sentient book, a telepathic connection to an ancient horror, and a cantrip that solves all of life's problems. Somehow, the answer is always Eldritch Blast. Show Notes We kick off our look at Warlocks by exploring the first four levels of one of the most customizable classes in 5e. From choosing your patron to selecting spells and invocations, we discuss how early decisions shape the entire character and why Warlocks punch far above their weight despite their limited spell slots. Along the way, we break down the strengths and weaknesses of Pact Magic, examine the importance of short rests, and discuss which options provide the biggest impact in the early game. We also talk about common traps, favorite spell choices, and how invocations turn a simple spellcaster into something uniquely weird. Whether you're building a blaster, a battlefield controller, or just someone who made a very questionable life decision with an extraplanar entity, levels 1 through 4 are where the foundation of your character really comes together. Key Takeaways Patron choice defines much of your playstyle and provides important features right from level 1. Warlocks rely on a small number of spell slots, making careful spell selection extremely important. Short rest recovery is a major source of the class's power and changes how the class feels compared to other casters. Eldritch Invocations are one of the most flexible customization systems in the game. Eldritch Blast often becomes the foundation of many builds, especially when combined with key invocations. Early-level spell choices can dramatically improve survivability, utility, and damage output. Level 2 is a major power spike thanks to invocations. Level 3 introduces Pact Boons, opening up very different character concepts and playstyles. Level 4 provides an Ability Score Improvement or feat, allowing players to further specialize their build. Warlocks reward planning and system mastery, but even simple builds can be highly effective. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Somewhere in Golarion, a tiny halfling cleric stands on a battlefield declaring that war is bad and violence solves nothing. Seconds later, he charges into combat with a hammer-and-sickle-decorated glaive, threatening to enforce peace by force. Meanwhile, a dragon-worshiping kobold is handing out experimental body modifications like coupons, and an undead enthusiast is one bad day away from becoming a lich because dying once was already one time too many. Somehow, this became a cleric episode. Show Notes This week we tackled Pathfinder 2e Clerics from levels 1 through 10 and quickly discovered that none of us had any intention of making wholesome heal-bots. Instead, we ended up with a collection of morally questionable short kings dedicated to violence, dragons, and undeath. Before diving into the builds, we spent some time discussing Pathfinder's deities, faiths, and philosophies. Ash walked through the Laws of Mortality philosophy, which somehow manages to oppose religion while occasionally becoming just as fanatical as the people it criticizes. Randall immediately embraced the concept and created a pacifist war priest whose solution to conflict is apparently more conflict. Ash also shared details from a new Starfinder campaign involving amnesiac characters trapped aboard a failing space station, creepy recordings, reality-bending horrors, and accusations of stealing ideas from Randall. Ash clarified that any theft was actually from Knights of the Old Republic II, which is apparently perfectly acceptable. Once the episode officially started, we built three very different clerics. Tyler embraced undeath through Urgathoa, focusing on survivability and refusing to ever experience death again. Ash created a dragon-obsessed kobold devoted to Dahak with enough fire and draconic abilities to make every problem look flammable. Randall built a tiny anti-war field medic whose philosophy boils down to peace through overwhelming force. Along the way we discussed doctrines, domains, divine fonts, Battle Harbingers, favorite weapons, and why evil gods consistently seem to have the coolest toys. By the end of the first ten levels, we had accidentally assembled Team Fun Size: three short clerics with deeply questionable life choices and entirely too much confidence. Key Takeaways Pathfinder clerics are extremely front-loaded and gain many important features at level 1. Faiths and philosophies offer interesting roleplaying options but usually provide fewer mechanical benefits than traditional deities. Warpriests gain armor and weapon advantages while Cloistered Clerics focus more heavily on spellcasting. Divine Fonts are far more flexible after the remaster because they no longer depend on Charisma. Harm-focused clerics can become surprisingly durable through self-healing and temporary hit points. Domains provide powerful focus spells and can dramatically shape a cleric's playstyle. Battle Harbinger and class archetypes show how Pathfinder 2e can radically alter classes without creating entirely new ones. Short ancestries apparently became an accidental theme, resulting in Team Fun Size. Randall's anti-war cleric demonstrated that ideals and practical solutions do not always align. Ash's Starfinder campaign premise proves that creepy space stations never go out of style. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
After two actual play episodes, we finally sat down to answer the important questions. Why was there a demon in the basement? Why were people making drugs out of supernatural whale juice? Why did our cult immediately choose violence as a conflict resolution strategy? And perhaps most importantly, how many times can you accidentally make things worse before it becomes your crew's official business model? As it turns out, the answer is "a lot." And somehow that's exactly how Blades in the Dark is supposed to work. Show Notes We wrapped up our Blades in the Dark series by pulling back the curtain on everything that happened during the score. Randall finally revealed what was actually going on behind the scenes, explaining the Grey Cloaks, the corrupt Bluecoats, the illegal refinery, and the fact that our crew only uncovered about thirty percent of the mystery. Somehow, despite missing most of the conspiracy, we still managed to completely ruin everyone's plans. From there, we dug into the mechanics that make Blades in the Dark feel different from traditional fantasy RPGs. We talked about consequences, stress, trauma, healing, advancement, and how the game expects complications to drive the story rather than stop it. Coming from games like Dungeons and Dragons and Pathfinder, we spent some time discussing how strange it feels when success and consequences regularly happen at the same time. The downtime system ended up being one of the most interesting parts of the discussion. Recovering from injuries, indulging vices, reducing heat, building territory, and even potentially spending time in prison all create opportunities for new stories instead of simply resetting everything between adventures. Apparently prison gangs and ghost cults can coexist surprisingly well. By the end of the episode, we came away with a better appreciation for how tightly the mechanics and setting work together. Blades in the Dark constantly rewards messy stories, weird complications, and players who are willing to embrace disaster. Which is fortunate, because disaster seems to be our party's greatest strength. Key Takeaways The crew only uncovered a fraction of the conspiracy surrounding the illegal refinery The Grey Cloaks hired the crew to expose corruption tied to the Bluecoats The operation involved trapped spirits, electroplasm extraction, and an imprisoned demon Blades in the Dark expects consequences to create new stories instead of ending them Stress and trauma are resources that players are encouraged to spend and manage Downtime activities allow characters to heal, reduce stress, train, and pursue projects Heat and Wanted Levels create long-term consequences for reckless crews Prison and faction politics can become entire story arcs in longer campaigns Claims and territory expansion give crews long-term goals beyond individual scores Advancement is tied to roleplaying choices and embracing character flaws The setting and mechanics are deeply connected, making the world feel integral to gameplay Our cult somehow solved a major criminal conspiracy while understanding only about thirty percent of what was actually happening Releasing a demon may not have been the original mission objective, but it certainly made the score memorable Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
Every adventuring party has that one person who looks at an ancient magical artifact and immediately thinks, I can improve this. In this episode, we continue our journey through the Artificer and explore what happens when a character combines magical talent, engineering confidence, and absolutely no respect for reasonable safety standards. The result is a class that can solve problems, create new problems, and somehow convince the rest of the party that both outcomes were part of the plan. Show Notes The Artificer continues to stand apart as one of the most unique classes in modern fantasy roleplaying games. In this second installment of our Artificer deep dive, we move beyond the basics and dig into the class features, mechanics, and choices that transform a clever inventor into a walking magical toolbox. We examine how the class blends spellcasting, utility, and support capabilities while maintaining remarkable flexibility. Along the way, we discuss infusions, equipment choices, subclass considerations, and the many ways Artificers can fill gaps in a party composition. Whether you're building a heavily armored front-line inventor, a battlefield support specialist, or a gadget-obsessed problem solver, the class offers an impressive range of options. As always, we explore both the strengths and limitations of the design, highlight practical build advice, and discuss how players can get the most value out of their magical inventions without accidentally turning every session into a product demonstration. Key Takeaways Artificers thrive on versatility and can adapt to a wide variety of party roles. Infusions remain one of the class's defining features and provide significant customization opportunities. Equipment selection often has a larger impact on performance than it does for many other classes. The class rewards players who enjoy planning ahead and thinking creatively about problem solving. Artificers excel at supporting allies through magical items, utility options, and flexible spellcasting. Resource management and preparation are important for maximizing the class's effectiveness. Different subclass choices can dramatically change how the character functions at the table. The class often shines brightest when solving challenges outside of combat. Creative use of tools and class features can frequently accomplish things that other classes cannot. Understanding how your infusions, spells, and equipment interact is key to building an effective character. Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you. Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players. Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings. Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community. Meet the Hosts Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix. Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy. Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale (affiliate link) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati
What happens when tabletop gaming meets startup culture?In this episode of BusinessRPG, Devon Chulick (co-founder of StartPlaying.games, and founder of totalpartychill.com) breaks down how he turned professional Dungeon Mastering into a scalable business platform used by thousands of players around the world.One of the biggest takeaways from this episode is how powerful niche communities can become when paired with strong systems and authentic customer experiences.Whether you're a founder, creator, gamer, or aspiring entrepreneur, this episode offers practical insight into building something scalable around a passionate audience.startplaying.gamestotalpartychill.comdevonchulick.comConnect with Devon on IG and LinkedIn
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