Salazar Stormwind

he/him - 25 - game design - ttrpgs - homebrew #ShadowWizardMoneyGang

[caught-in-a-tism]

About me

I am a full-time wizard (real) and I specialize in making stuff up for games and things.

You may call me friend, enemy, little guy, nemesis, wise one, etc.

Foul Daemons and Sorcerers DNI unless you're hot

[caught-in-a-tism]

ALSO if you use my homebrew tell me how it goes PLEASE I need the validation

[prokopetz]

Game design exercise: You've been tasked with creating a non-trademark-infringing version of the beholder. The design brief specifies that your version should have ten creepy eyestalks with ten distinct magic powers, like the standard beholder, but these powers must not overlap with even one of the standard beholder powers.

For the purpose of this exercise, assume that the forbidden list consists of exactly the ten magic eyeball powers that are present in the Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition Monster Manual. (i.e., you don't need to research every magic eyeball power that's ever been attributed to a beholder in every iteration of D&D ever published.)

For reference, these ten powers are:

Controls your mind

Paralyses you

Makes you afraid

Slows you down

Makes you weak

General purpose telekinesis

Puts you to sleep

Turns you to stone

Disintegration ray

Just fucking kills you

These are all off limits.

So:

What ten magic eyeball powers do you give your legally-not-a-beholder?

[caught-in-a-tism]

(old draft, but completing it because I'm using it as a prompt while working on one of my ttrpgs)

Here are my alternate eye rays. Some might mechanically end up similar to a beholder's, but they are at least thematically unique.

Freeze ray

Heat ray

Causes you to hallucinate

Creates physical barriers

Reads your mind

Creates areas of darkness

Turns the ground into quicksand/mud/slime

Makes you attack everyone

Flips your alignment/personality

Shifts you a few seconds into the future

I'm also including the stats I've written for the creature in my (in development) game, Hex Quest. The last 4 effects are optional features, because the structure I'm using for statblocks restricts me to 6 eyes per individual.

Beholdisn't

Ocularian - lvl 6 Type: 1 size 2 outsider Attitude: hostile Speed: 4 spaces d6 Traits: Boons: [ - ] Curses: [ - ] 1 Cyan Eye Roll to percei

[destined-productions]

I love classic marble games so much I made this love letter to them!

If you want to join me on the journey to make the best love letter to retro marble games wishlist on steam now! More wishlists = more levels!

Marble's Marbles on Steam

A love letter to the classic marble games. Help Marble find his lost marbles and roll through physics-powered worlds packed with wild challe

[txttletale]

people often talk about how d&d 5e is a horrible starting point that makes players struggle with other systems and that's true but it also does this for GMs. so many people i know had their first exposure to ttrpgs through d&d 5e and so view any GM or facilitator role with absolute dread assuming that it is an unpaid game design role that requires not only hours of prep every session but also to carefully micromanage every aspect of the game to singlehandedly balance it for the specific outcome of 'the party wins, but, like, it feels difficult' while simultaneously remembering everyone's rules for them & being treated like a substitute teacher

[footsteps-on-the-dance-floor]

I'm really interested to know which systems don't ask so much of the GM? I love 5e but it is really Exhausting.

[theresattrpgforthat]

Did someone ask if there was a ttrpg for that?

Stewpot: Tales from a Fantasy Tavern, by Takuma Okada, is a collection of slice-of-life mini-games all about running a fantasy tavern together. It's got varying level of difficulty, with some games that work well for introducing yourself to the game, and others that are basically just excuses to roleplay! The game uses a deck of cards to introduce random elements, like ingredients for your dishes or elements of your tavern's atmosphere. If you like cozy fantasy stories with plenty of chances to dive into character moments, you'll love this game.

Faux Claw, by beccamay, is a game about cyberpunk criminal cats, with escalating consequences every time you fail. When you fail a roll, place your failing dice in a stack. The stack grows and grows until it falls, causing a big cat-astrophe! If you want goofy antics and big moments with cartoon-style action, you might like Faux Claw.

Against the Gloom, by Scryptid Games, is a game about fantastical musicians sailing across The Gloom, a dangerous void.It uses a d6 system inspired by Yahtzee! You "harmonize" your dice to get closer to success, and use musical magic to power your ship. If you want dramatic scenes that feel a little bit Saturday-morning-cartoon, you might want to check out this game.

Monster Guts 2e, by Wheels Within Wheels Publishing, is a game about killing monsters in order to defend your village and improve your own weapons and armor. If you're a fan of Breath of the Wild or the Monster Hunter franchise, you might find the cycle of play in this game really rewarding.

Atomic Powered Mutant Girls, by Cilindro Cubico, is a simple magical girls ttrpg inspired by Powerpuff Girls and similar Saturday morning cartoons. When you build your character, you roll 2d6 to randomly determine your girls' mutant magic powers, allowing for really kooky and interesting characters that might create some neat combos! If you like powerful characters and a little bit of creepy to go along with the cute, you might like this game.

Not sure if anything here fits your vibe? That's what the rest of my blog is for. <3

[transfagrified-in-the-void]

Here is a free pdf of the players handbook

Here is a free pdf of xanathars guide to everything

Here is a free pdf to monsters manual

Here is a free pdf to tashas cauldron of everything

Here is a free pdf to dungeon master’s guide

Here is a free pdf to volo’s guide to monsters

Here is a free pdf of mordenkainen’s tomb of foes

For all your dnd purposes

[tech--romancer]

oh know I sneezed and hit reblog by accident and now I’m typing this by accident too

[caught-in-a-tism]

i love u

yeah

[casusvallis]

╰┈➤ ❝ [The Map Of The Mirror World] ❞

The Mirror World is a dismal piece of land, completely isolated from the real world. It is stuck within its mountains and caverns, no way to escape without death. While Casus Vallis has a road to exit the town, there is no exiting this place. It is an island surrounded by deep, endless pits with countless bodies littering the bottom. The towns people of Casus Vallis do not know of this place, and if they do, they work really hard to pretend it does not exist or hide it from the rest of their community.

It isn't known when or how this place was formed, near impossible to determine its true history. It is a paranormal anomaly that can only be accessed from Casus Vallis' natural reflective ponds, commonly referred to as Mirror Pools. The Mirror World holds the reflections of townspeople in Casus Vallis, shadowy and empty souls wandering its streets.

If people are unlucky enough to end up in The Mirror World, they are stuck there, taking over their old reflections and living the rest of their existence channeling that empty soul. Their scleras go black, and they are faced with the harsh reality of never going back home. Most reflections have made peace with their placement, following one of the few leaders in the land.

Those who have studied the history of Casus Vallis are able to manipulate the powers that The Mirror World provides, and wholeheartedly accepting the pains of the land lend people an unspeakable power - no longer aging, unbelievable strength, and a bloodthirsty perspective.

The Mirror World changes people, usually for the worst. The biology and chemistry of the nature is impossible by the real worlds standards - examining objects shows that everything is made of antimatter, which hypothetically would make any matter completely annihilated. Antimatter should not survive contact with beings, but The Mirror World is a true reflection of the world.

Each subarea of The Mirror World is separated by deep cliffs, difficult to move through unless you can move between Mirror Pools. In this place, there is no peace, no harmony, and no comforts.

∘₊✧──────────────────✧₊∘

╰┈➤ The first map depicts the whole town, without labels, just to view its basic appearance.

╰┈➤ The second map depicts how each community in The Mirror World is separated. There may some intersecting, though it is difficult to do so.

╰┈➤ To read specific points on each sub group in the town, look below!

Noel's Domain Sacral's Domain Mirror's Refuge Testing Grounds Blunderlands Forest

[aetrunrecords]

all the mirror world maps are completed as well !!!!!!

[caught-in-a-tism]

Spooky magical dimension

[casusvallis]

╰┈➤ ❝ [Blunderlands Forest] ❞

A dangerous and frightening forest. Each decade, the forest grows closer to the town and overtakes the farmlands, despite people trying to trim it down. It escalates up the mountain, shadowing the town and reminding residents of their small size. It holds many secrets and pieces of history, that new residents have no idea about. If you look closely, you might see mushrooms or plants moving in weird ways, as if avoiding humans.

∘₊✧──────────────────✧₊∘

╰┈➤[1] The Pit

A place where bad influences tend to hang out - a safe area where people can do drugs, drink freely, and blast annoyingly loud music. Covered in spray painted artwork, huge sticks positioned into makeshift statues, and trash littered all over the place. It borders on the Blunderlands Forest entrance, so most people are too nervous to approach, making it perfect for people to let loose and have fun.

╰┈➤[2] Abandoned Shed

Right on the edge of the forest, this is an unknown and suspicious shed. No one has went in for decades. Covered in weeds, vines, and tall grass. Even people with experience in the forest don't go anywhere near this shed.

╰┈➤[3] Glass Pond

A crystal clear pond with several beautiful fish, where the rocks carry a beautiful non-metallic luster. The waters filter from further into the forest from the Magma Doluit Deam, leaving it with a glittery shimmer. Sometimes, college students will swim and skinny dip, though residents push people not to go near it. Anything near the Blunderlands Forest is always risky to examine... but the water is eerily hypnotizing.

╰┈➤[4] Mountain Strip

A cliff with vertical rock, steep and intimidating. It has beautiful grooves that stretch all around the mountain. Before the forest escalated further into the farmlands, residents used to rock climb the strip, but now sits unused.

╰┈➤[5] Magma Doluit Deam

A statue depicting the leading religious diety of Casus, Doluit Deam. The Goddess' eyes drip with a metalic, shiny fluid, pouring into her hand and into the waters below, a beautiful waterfall with emotional implications. It was built several centuries ago and was worshiped by residents before the forest overgrew the area, with the water being used for several rituals. Now it is largely forgotten by residents, hidden within the forest and untouched for generations. The water is like a reflective mirror, filtering all throughout the town...

╰┈➤[6] Priestess Quentin's Castle

An abandoned castle, overgrown with weeds. Used to house the reigning Priestess of Casus Vallis, Priestess Quentin. Leading the land over the 19th century, she was said to have a personal connection to the Doluit Deam. Monarchy was introduced to Casus by settlers, and Priestess Quentin was a native villager who used her connections to rule the town peacefully. Histories don't know exactly how the Priestess passed, but some claim she was assassinated for her radical and progressive views. Almost immediately after her passing, the college was in works to be planned by a stranger.

╰┈➤[7] Priestess Clearing

Used to be a campground when the forest was not as scary. Before the woods overgrew the area, the campground was bustling. Now it is simply an empty clearing, with plant life refusing to grow. Casus history books claim that the Priestess and her knight often rested in this clearing, sharing romantic moments... though they were star-crossed lovers.

╰┈➤[8] Dead Man's Pond

A huge pool of water, murky and stinky. While Glass Pond is clear and safe to drink, Dead Man's Pond is full of filth and dead fish. Gas emanates from the waters, and any bugs that fly by die pretty quickly. The waters filter from the Magma Doluit Deam. Surprisingly, the only living creatures are frogs and toads, which do not follow a normal diet. Suspicious...

╰┈➤[9] Marshlands Cave

A cave where Dead Man's Pond's waters filter through. The cave drips with red, harsh-smelling fluid, and has the nickname 'Bleeding Cave' or 'Decomp Cave'. People don't like it because it stinks REAL bad in there, but there is a lot of plant life and creatures to explore.

╰┈➤[10] Marshlands

Filled with amphibians and filth, the Marshlands is largely avoided. Back in the late 1960s, a man and his lover were murdered on the land, their bodies decomposing into the marsh and only being found months later. People say his spirit still stalks the waters, so people don't get too close. The cave and marsh are closely connected, all the waters coming from the Magma Doluit Deam.

╰┈➤[11] Willow Residence

The home of Seth Willow. Nobody talks to him, nobody knows him. People who have seen him claim he doesn't age, and has lived there for decades. Don't get close to him.

[caught-in-a-tism]

Oath of the Martyr

Subclass for paladins who believe they deserve to suffer :)

(subclass by me, art by @citrunrecords)

[caught-in-a-tism]

Oath of the Martyr

Subclass for paladins who believe they deserve to suffer :)

(subclass by me, art by @citrunrecords)

[caught-in-a-tism]

Rate Wizard Duel by friend_the_tiefling for Brackeys Game Jam 2024.2

You only know one spell and it is called NUCLEAR STORM

I made a game about wizards having a standoff in the sky

[caught-in-a-tism]

A TTRPG about Angels

I have not tested this yet, but I'm hoping to soon and I'm thinking maybe some people on here could offer feedback or try it themselves! The base system is something I think could be used as a template for other types of settings, by just swapping out the stats and changing the names of the other player options. Specifically I see it working well for one-shots and games where every player is a version of the same thing (mechs, witches, kaiju, etc).

It is four and a half pages long.

Concept: 

Players take the roles of angels, eldritch and benevolent beings that exist outside of time and space. They manifest human-like forms on earth to fight evil and contain supernatural forces. They cannot change the course of destiny or history, but can alleviate suffering wherever or whenever they find themselves. Their time, however, is limited. An Angel’s mere presence can endanger and terrify the mortals they seek to protect, and so they must leave when their ability to conceal their true nature wanes. 

Their human forms can be identified by subtle traits - objects they carry with symbolic meaning, the glow of their halos visible in their shadows, and a slight divine aura. As they create miracles and overcome challenges that mortals cannot, their visage slips away. They become more alien, more arcane, more detached. Some wear their masks impatiently and return to their true nature as soon as they have an excuse. Others cherish their time among humans, even mourning their inability to stay and live normal lives.

Setting Concept: Players take the roles of angels, eldritch and benevolent beings that exist outside of time and space. They manifest human

[caught-in-a-tism]

Split-Second

I actually have my own game that's currently in development, but I won't post it directly yet because I'm working on getting it published. What I want to do with this post is introduce the concept by making one of the core mechanics into a mod for D&D 5e.

It's actually really funny because when I first conceived of this game it was as a mod for D&D, but then I thought it would be so much work to fully realize the mechanic that it would be better to just make a new game. Now that I'm about 4 years into developing it I realized it wouldn't be THAT hard if I'm willing to simplify a little bit.

My Game:

The main mechanic I based Split-Second around is an initiative system based around modelling time. The characters in a fight scene are placed on a timeline, moving forward when they initiate actions.

Who's turn it is is determined by who is lowest on the timeline. When it is your turn, you resolve any action you already had in progress and then choose your next one if it's still your turn. Because you move forward before resolving it, slower actions will allow other characters to choose actions in response to yours and potentially interrupt or prepare for it.

There are of course other major mechanics but this is the one I'm gonna focus on today.

Split Second (D&D Version):

To make this actually feasible, we will not be rebalancing anything or making activation times for each thing that can be done. Instead, the basic types of actions will each get an activation and we will go from there.

DISCLAIMER: This system is more complicated than the standard initiative system of 5e. It makes smaller fights and duels more interesting, but can drag out combat even more than normal if too many characters are involved. I recommend only using this with 4 or less party members, and keeping encounters small (unless you're ready to run goblins and kobalds as swarms). I also suggest pre-calculating the activations of all enemy actions and keeping physical slips of paper that you can use to mark actions in-progress.

EDIT: I forgot about legendary actions. If you use this, legendary actions can happen whenever a player resolves an action.

Split-Second (D&D Mod)

No description.

PDF version in case the Homebrewery link doesn't format well on your device:

[dailyadventureprompts]

Adventure: Grasping for Answers

Throughout their early adventures the party come into conflict with the agents of the mysterious mage known only as "The Ravelling Hand", a villain of uncertain identity who seems to have lots of schemes and no qualms using violence, trickery, and unexpected magic to get what they want.

Adventure Hooks:

The party first become entangled with the hand's minions when they're asked by an innocuous travelling merchant to deliver a small wrapped parcel to the wizard living one town over. The wizard isn't open to receiving guests, and after sneaking or charming their way in, the party will find out why: her apprentice has been kidnapped, the parcel contains both of the boy's index fingers as well as a note explaining that she can have the rest of him back in exchange for several dangerous texts in her collection, delivered by the party to the same intermediary who hired them. A brawl is likely to ensue as the wizard suspects the party is in on the blackmail, but if they can talk her down maybe they can figure out a way to work together to get the boy back before any more harm comes to him.

Most thieves know better than to try and rob a magic item shop, but most thieves aren't armed with dispel magic infused salt grenades to neutralize the shop's ubiquitous defences. A rash of these attacks across the duchy has shopkeepers worried, and one hires the party to stake out their store for the night when they suspect someone is casing it. Do the party trail the robbers back to their hideout, or interrupt them mid heist only for combat to delay them long enough for those indiscriminate defences to start turning back on?

Spoiler Alert: The mage is in fact an arcanely gifted lesser kraken by the name of Dlexx who seeks to avail itself of all the magical knowledge amassed on land. Sure the deep has its own mysteries but there's a thriving trade in spellscrolls and arcane tomes that don't make it below the waves. Using an old lighthouse as a disguise for its massive form while on land, it uses telepathy and sendings to direct its minions without ever revealing its true nature. Imagine the party's surprise when they roll up to the villain's lair expecting to bully some crusty nerd with a ratty beard and instead the lair sprouts tentacles that drag them into the crashing surf.

Challenges & Consequences

Finding Dlexx is an adventure in and of itself. When questioned, most of the mage's minions admit to never having met their employer, and those high ranking enough to have been summoned to a place called "saltbite tower" in dreams only to later have their memories muddled. Careful interrogation and study of local maps will have the party realize that the tower is infact an abandoned lighthouse, which will narrow their search as they comb the costline for their enemy's lair.

Actually defeating the Ravelling Hand might prove too much for early level adventurers, as in addition to being a powerful mage the kraken is literally in its element, able to breathe and move while the heroes flounder. Dlexx will toy with them, throwing unconscious foes out of the water the way a fisherman throws back a catch that is too small. When the battle is over and it's proved it's point the kraken will collapse the tower and leave into the wide ocean, telepathically taunting them with their inability to follow.

Though the Ravelling Hand will not resurface for some time, the destruction of the tower and Dlexx's retreat into the deep is partially a bluff. The kraken chose that particular lighthouse because it was a short distance away from the coral reef into which it scribed its arcane learning the way a wizard records spells in a book, coiling arms etching formulae into hundreds of yards of living stone. Dlexx must periodically return to the reef to add spells to it, and sightings by locals (or the occasional fish manifesting with magical talent) might clue the party into the reef's existence.

A pair of merfolk siblings named Crashing-Tide and Arcing-Mirror serve the Ravelling Hand as apprentices and scribes, having promised seven years of utmost loyalty in exchange for the chance to bring the arcane knowledge of the surface back to their community. They tend to the reef, and allow the Kraken to borrow their eyes from afar so that it might study the spells scribed there. Several years into their pledge, Crash (the sister) has come to idolize Dlexx and the power it wields above and below the waves, wishing that the whole of their shoal to come into its service. Mirror (the brother) is skeptical, well aware of the kraken's manipulations and distantly suspicious of the conflict that it invokes. Perhaps if the party can intercede with these two they can learn more about their enemy's plans, though doing so will take some careful diplomacy.

Artist

[polyhedralmice]

Do you have d6s? Do you have approximately 54 seconds? Interesting in testing a spell mechanic? Here’s your mission, should you choose to accept it: roll on the d6 table and then on the d66 table. Smush the 2 resulting words together to make a spell!

(For example: move+bubble carries you and your companions over a deep chasm, or chaos+shrink changes anything in close range to half its size for the next 10 seconds)

A d66 table operates exactly like percentile dice, except with d6s instead of d10s. Roll 1d6 twice. The first number is your 10s place and the second it your 1s place. So rolling a 5 and then a 2 would be 52 on the table.

Now that you have a spell, let me know how it came out! Thanks for the help!

What is your spell like?

Versatile

Useful in specific circumstances

Solves problems creatively

Not that useful

Just plain confusing

Voting ended onJun 9, 2024

[caught-in-a-tism]

Gonna make 3 because I love things like this!

Alter+Up: If not just reverse gravity, perhaps it modifies sense of direction? Target falls prone when they try to walk or run, and moves in a random direction if flying.

Shield+Wave: I like the idea of a protective field being sent out over a group of allies in a cone, maybe even as a reaction that suppresses another AOE.

Blast+Bubble: Arcane minefield probably.

[jim-the-trash-king]

Right, I’m currently in the process of making a little Indie TTRPG because this shit is my crack and I want to make something people will enjoy, so that being said

Does the idea of a Roguelite TTRPG sound at all interesting to you

Yes

No

Voting ended onJun 14, 2024

Please reblog if you are interested so I can get a larger sample size :)

[fibbunny]

It’s fine because I’m actually using a secret technique called writing it in my head and nowhere else.