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One Page Encounters: Goblin Defectors
As promised, we have we have released yet another delightful one-page encounter! Today’s tale is meant to keep your heroes on their toes....
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Blog of Many Words
Hear ye, hear ye! Welcome, fair traveler, to this blogspot, whereupon you shall be enlightened, ensorcelled, and endowed with great wisdom by heeding our counsel.
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Helpful NPC Ryan
- Jan 22
- 3 min
"I'm Bored, Let's Get to the Action!"
Some time ago, a situation occurred in Helpful NPC Thomas’ Isle of Dread game. As my character conversed with a procession of NPCs, a...
15 views
Helpful NPCs
- Jan 8
- 1 min
WotC: D&D Fanbase Not Sufficiently Alienated To Generate Profit
According to a leaked memo, Wizards of the Coast executives expressed concern that D&D 5e is too consumer-friendly to be profitable. The...
10,605 views
Helpful NPCs
- Jan 4
- 1 min
A Random Encounter Generator For Your Random Encounter Generator? Yes.
There are a million random encounter generation tables online. We've even made our own. But there are some questions encountered when...
368 views
Helpful NPCs
- Dec 12, 2022
- 1 min
Sailing the Sea of Stars (Or Some Minor Modifications to Spelljammer) (Part 1)
D&D 5e's Spelljammer supplement is fairly light in terms of rules density, so we opted to expand the system. There's more to come from...
83 views
Helpful NPCs
- Sep 17, 2022
- 3 min
5e: Making Skill Proficiency Better Without Changing a Single Number
A lot of people complain about skills in 5e because the benefits of being trained in a skill are miniscule. A meager +2 bonus at first...
85 views
Helpful NPCs
- Aug 3, 2022
- 3 min
Dungeons & Dividends (Or, D&D's Monetization Problem)
D&D has a monetization problem. Recently, while running a D&D game at a Friendly Local Gaming Store, a gentleman approached the Helpful...
205 views
Helpful NPCs
- Jul 29, 2022
- 1 min
d100 Roadside Encounters for Fledgling Adventurers (Levels 1-4)
How often do the player characters find themselves traveling along a road...only for nothing to happen? Point A time skips to Point B....
270 views
Helpful NPCs
- May 12, 2022
- 1 min
The Pack Mule, New and Improved
Hello! The Helpful NPCs crew here. We've updated the Pack Mule class with some snazzy new designs and artwork. Take a look at...
39 views
Helpful NPC Thom
- May 7, 2022
- 3 min
D&D 5e's Skills (Part 1): What's the DC for Open Heart Surgery?
Hello, Helpful NPC Thom here, and I'm going to talk about how to make 5e's skill system work for you, but first let's talk about the DC...
31 views
Helpful NPCs
- Apr 21, 2022
- 1 min
April Fool Me None-Ce
Not many days ago, we posted a lengthy lament about Wizards of the Coast abandoning us olden dayes gamers in favor of a younger, hipper,...
34 views
Helpful NPC Ryan
- Apr 4, 2022
- 1 min
Magic Item Alert: Ease your burdens with this humble construct
Some of our favorite magical items are not the ones that slay dragons. We love the simple stuff that gives parties flavor and utility. ...
39 views
Helpful NPC Thom
- Apr 3, 2022
- 3 min
Paizo's Abomination Vaults Comes to 5e
Paizo has made waves by announcing a conversion of their adventure The Abomination Vaults to D&D 5e, or what they pointedly describe as...
24 views
Helpful NPC Thom
- Mar 23, 2022
- 3 min
How To Trap Like a Furrier
As Helpful NPC Ryan noted, there's a methodology to making traps a part of your roleplaying game. Sadly, I wail and lament that good...
27 views
Helpful NPC Ryan
- Mar 23, 2022
- 2 min
Are Traps out of Touch?
Helpful NPC Thom says: No, it's the children who are wrong. One of my friends was recently discussing Elden Ring with me (which I’ve not...
31 views
Helpful NPCs
- Mar 7, 2022
- 1 min
5e Sidekick Class: The Camp Master
Hello, fine friends of the Helpful NPCs! We have something exciting to share with you: a new sidekick class for the fifth edition of the...
35 views
Helpful NPCs
- Mar 4, 2022
- 1 min
Chapter 6, Episode 3: Roleplaying Alignment
How should players approach alignment in D&D? With fear and trembling and consideration of the rest of the table. No classes have an...
14 views
Helpful NPCs
- Mar 2, 2022
- 1 min
Chapter 6, Episode 2: DMing Alignment Without Killing Your Game
Nothing kills a game faster than bad DMing, and alignment is ground whereupon a DM must needs tread carefully. As most DMs handle...
11 views
Helpful NPCs
- Feb 28, 2022
- 1 min
Chapter 6, Episode 1: The Malignment of Alignment
Take a listen to the fresh beats of the Helpful NPCs crew as they tackle the controversial system of alignment. It has been (rightly and...
10 views
Helpful NPCs
- Dec 1, 2021
- 1 min
The Pack Mule Playtest
Come one, come all, to the mighty mule's playtest! We discussed it in our previous podcast episode (Chapter 5, Episode 3), but we're here...
30 views
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