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A Dungeons & Dragons podcast, where a rotating panel of DM’s provides insight and inspiration for Players and Dungeon Masters.
Episodes
Tuesday Aug 11, 2020
Tuesday Aug 11, 2020
So much of our favourite pop culture is based upon destroying the status quo, making a hair-brained scheme, and then fighting the insurmountable odds, but in D&D the hair-brained scheme is often overlooked. So how do you offer opportunity and agency without having the session go wildly off the rails? Adam and Dan walk you through what it means to go from storyteller to audience, and why Dungeon Masters should not necessarily be concerned with the realism surrounding player schemes.
Takeaways:
- When the party plots and schemes while the tension ratchets up, and the Dungeon Master steps back to a reactionary role, the campaign is operating at peak performance.
- Revenge is a major motivating factor for most players, but they might try to surprise their DM. If this is the case, be cognizant of whether or not this is because they want to have a big cool moment, or if they just don't trust you as the Dungeon Master.
- One of the major issues with giving the players total agency over a story beat is simply that analysis paralysis might set in. Providing boundaries and nudges might be required to keep them on track.
- Dungeon Masters should take more notes than the players to maintain consistency.
- Using enemy powers and tactics against the players in this session may inspire them to use similar powers and tactics in the next session against the big boss fight.
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Email: info@itsamimic.com
Intro/Outro Music by: Cory Wiebe
Logo by: Kate Skidmore
Tuesday Aug 04, 2020
Tuesday Aug 04, 2020
Theros is all about big personas, gifts from gods, epic monsters, and heroic journeys, and in this episode of the It's A Mimic! podcast, the titans on the panel of Dungeon Masters clash together to Gather the Magic and go on a odyssey of mythic proportions as they explore the newest campaign setting for Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition. But even it all seems Greek to you now, there's enough divine insight in the episode to raise your knowledge to epic levels. So step aboard the chariot and prepare your eloquence for glory!
Locations:
Akros
Meletis
Setessa
Oreskos
Phoberos
Skophos
Asphodel
Odunos
Skola Vale
Katachthon Mountains
Oraniad Mountains
Nyx
Gods:
Athreos
Ephara
Erebos
Heliod
Iroas
Karametra
Keranos
Klothys
Kruphix
Mogis
Nylea
Pharika
Phenax
Purphoros
Thassa
Available On: iTunes | Spotify | Podbean | YouTube
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Intro/Outro Music by: Cory Wiebe/Tyler Gibson
Logo by: Kate Skidmore
Monday Aug 03, 2020
Monday Aug 03, 2020
In this first half of the discussion on Sharn, City of Towers, Dave leads Adam through the basic layout of the city, and does a tour of both the richest and poorest areas of the city. Remember that the neighbourhoods are called "Quarters", each neighbourhood includes three vertical regions called "Wards", and each ward has multiple "Districts".
Quarters:
Central Plateau
Dura
Menthis Plateau
Northedge
Tavick's Landing
Landmarks:
The Dagger River
The Hilt
Skyway
The Cogs
The City of the Dead
Central Plateau Districts:
Korranath (Upper Central)
Platinum Heights (Upper Central)
Mithral Tower (Upper Central)
Ambassador Towers (Middle Central)
Dragon Towers (Middle Central)
Sovereign Towers (Middle Central)
Boldrei's Hearth (Lower Central)
Olladra's Kitchen (Lower Central)
Central Plateau Locations:
Aurora Gallery (Platinum Heights)
The Korranath (Korranath)
Kundarak Bank of Sharn (Korranath)
Lyrandar Tower (Highest Towers)
Cathedral of the Cleansing Flame (Sovereign Towers)
The Citadel (Ambassador Towers)
The Panaceum (Dragon Towers)
Pavilion of the Host (Sovereign Towers)
Dura Districts:
Daggerwatch (Upper Dura)
Highhold (Upper Dura)
Highwater (Upper Dura)
Overlook (Upper Dura)
The Bazaar (Middle Dura)
Hareth's Folly (Middle Dura)
Rattlestone (Middle Dura)
Tumbledown (Middle Dura)
Fallen (Lower Dura)
Malleon's Gate (Lower Dura)
Callestan (Lower Dura)
Precarious (Lower Dura)
Dura Locations:
Moraggan's (Highhold)
Pegasus Spire (Highwater)
The Hollow Tower (Hareth's Folly)
The Anvil (Callestan)
The Clifftop Adventurer's Guild (Clifftop)
Bazaar Merchants:
The Seven Leagues
Sundry's Shop
Roll and Conquer
Criminal Organizations:
Boromar Clan (Halflings that gamble, steal, and smuggle)
Daask (Droaam monsters that focus on violent crime ad extortion)
House Tarkanan (Citizens with aberrant Dragonmarks that are mercenaries, thieves and assassins)
The Tyrants (Changelings and magewrights that focus on forgery, grifters, deception, and information gathering)
Planes:
Syrania
Fernia
Astral Plane
Monster:
The Undying (Councilor and Soldier)
And Djed's place seems awfully quiet these days. We hope he's alright...
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Email: info@itsamimic.com
Intro/Outro Music by: Melodica's Music
Logo by: Kate Skidmore
Monday Aug 03, 2020
Monday Aug 03, 2020
Aha! Bet you didn't see it coming! Out of nowhere, here comes an episode on the worst kind of surprises in D&D: Betrayals! This episode sees Dan and Adam break down the why, when, and how of using effective, meaningful betrayals in your Dungeons & Dragons campaign.
Takeaways:
- Some players will blame the Dungeon Master for a betrayal, and focus on the DM as the adversary. The best way to avoid this is by having the betrayal be plausible.
- Squash the impulse to talk about the betrayal after the session. The players still working through it and analyzing all the small details. Hearing about how you designed the betrayal will put the attention on you and not the character.
- You can use your own attitudes and language to subtly imply that there is a distance between yourself and the villain you are revealing. Swapping from first-person perspective to third-person perspective is a good tool for this.
- Knowing the layout of the story in advance allows you to introduce some ideas quietly in the background of the plot while major issues, raising stakes, and resolutions are in full swing. This gives you the opportunity to drop hints about a betrayal early, so the players can look back on the plot later and see that the traitor was always there.
- Having a strong motivation is key to planning a betrayal. Without a proper motivation, this will seem like it's just a Dungeon Master adding a twist for their own selfish reasons.
Available On: iTunes | Spotify | Podbean | YouTube
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Email: info@itsamimic.com
Intro/Outro Music by: Cory Wiebe
Logo by: Kate Skidmore
Tuesday Jul 28, 2020
Tuesday Jul 28, 2020
In this week's episode, the panel of DM's goes chrome. That's right, this is the week Dan has been waiting for as the It's A Mimic! podcast finally details Silver Dragons. The goodest of the good, Silver Dragons cause a great divide between the hosts, and spurns on the debate about what is good and how it is allowed to affect your party. All this while inspiring some shiny combat and social encounters.
So listen in as the hosts tackle the paragons of goodness for Dungeons and Dragons 5e, and try to work out a way to use them as a big antagonist in your D&D campaigns.
Special bonus points to those who play this episodes drinking game, "Just like Dan!" Take a drink every time one of the hosts claims Silver Dragons are "Just like Dan!"
Available On: iTunes | Spotify | Podbean | YouTube
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Email: info@itsamimic.com
Intro/Outro Music by: Cory Wiebe/Tyler Gibson
Logo by: Kate Skidmore
Tuesday Jul 28, 2020
Tuesday Jul 28, 2020
This episode rambles about the planes of Eberron nearly as much as our hosts ramble about other topics and bad jokes. But one thing is certain: This planar landscape is very different from the Forgotten Realms' planes. So bear with Dave and Adam as they traverse these multiple landscapes and try to find parallels and theories about why these planes exist in the ways that they do.
Planes:
Danvi, The Perfect Order
Dol Quor, The Region of Dreams
Dolurrh, The Realm of the Dead
Fernia, The Sea of Fire
Irian, The Eternal Dawn
Kythri, The Churning Chaos
Lamannia, The Twilight Forest
Mabar, The Endless Night
Risia, The Plain of Ice
Shavarath, The Battleground
Syrania, The Azure Sky
Thelanis, The Faerie Court
Xoriat, The Realm of Madness
Adam's Clerical Musings:
Danvi: Order Domain
Dol Quor: None.
Dolurrh: Grave Domain
Fernia: Forge Domain
Irian: Light Domain
Kythri: Life Domain
Lamannia: Nature Domain
Mabar: Death Domain
Risia: Arcana Domain
Shavarath: War Domain
Syrania: Knowledge Domain
Thelanis: Trickery Domain
Xoriat: Tempest Domain
Bonus Ideas for Different Kinds of Planes:
The Plane of the Arts
The Plane of Competition
The Plane of Motherhood and Birth
Monster:
Zakya Rakshasa vs Rakshasa
And remember to stick around to see what crazy items Djed is trying to pawn off on Dave and Adam this week!
Available On: iTunes | Spotify | Podbean | YouTube
Don’t forget to Like/Follow/Subscribe/Whatever when you listen!
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Email: info@itsamimic.com
Intro/Outro Music by: Melodica's Music
Logo by: Kate Skidmore
Monday Jul 27, 2020
Monday Jul 27, 2020
Overland travel, wilderness encounters, and chases aside, there's another common kind of activity in the wild: Scouting. On this episode of the Campaign Builder, Dan and Adam encourage their players to get proactive and take the fight to their enemies.
Takeaways:
- Scouting relies on stealth, self-sufficiency, strategy, and speed
- Patrols and guards are the direct opposition to scouts.
- The frequency of patrols are dependent upon a number of factors, including landscape, enemy, and alertness.
- There are more dangers to scouts that just enemy forces. The wilderness is fraught with many dangers.
- Counter intelligence scouting should be a real threat.
Available On: iTunes | Spotify | Podbean | YouTube
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Email: info@itsamimic.com
Intro/Outro Music by: Cory Wiebe
Logo by: Kate Skidmore
Tuesday Jul 21, 2020
Tuesday Jul 21, 2020
This week, Dave and Adam get pious, faithful, and organized in another episode of Touring the Multiverse. But, like all things in Eberron, things are not as straightforward as they seem at first. From the appropriate use of hashtags to dirty hippy sects and a couple of happy takes on necromancy, there's something for everyone to get behind in this campaign setting!
Sovereign Host
- Aureon
- Arawai
- Balinor
- Boldrei
- Dol Arrah
- Dol Dorn
- Kol Korran
- Oliadra
- Onatar
The Dark Six
- The Devourer
- The Fury
- The Keeper
- The Mockery
- The Shadow
- The Traveler
The Church of the Silver Flame
- Tira Miron
- The Keeper of the Flame
- The Pure Flame
Cults of the Dragon Below
- Dyrrn the Corruptor
- Belashyrra
- Kyrzin
The Path of Light
- il-Lashtavar
- it-Yannah
- The Shadow Watchers
- Sentira
Spirits of the Past
- The Keeper of the Past
- Zaelshin
Undying Court
- Shae Mordai
- Densewood
Druids of Khorvaire
- Ashbound
- Children of Winter
- Gatekeepers
- Greensingers
- Wardens of the Wood
Blood of Vol
- Erandis d'Vol
- The Emerald Claw
- Lady Illmarrow, The Queen of the Dead
Organizations:
- Clifftop Adventurers' Guild
- The Aurum
- The Chamber
- The Dreaming Dark
- The Korranberg Chronicle
- The Lords of Dust
- Sora Kell, The Queen of the Night
- The Daughters of Sora Kell, Sora Katra, Sora Maenya, Sora Teraza
And stick around to see how Djed tries to give the boys a HAND after the outro!
Available On: iTunes | Spotify | Podbean | YouTube
Don’t forget to Like/Follow/Subscribe/Whatever when you listen!
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Email: info@itsamimic.com
Intro/Outro Music by: Melodica's Music
Logo by: Kate Skidmore
Tuesday Jul 21, 2020
Tuesday Jul 21, 2020
In this week's episode, the Dungeon Masters rock out to the gale force winds and let the engulfing waves wash over them like it was the 21st night of September (Yes, thats an Earth, Wind, and Fire joke). Thats right, this week on the It's a Mimic podcast, we're covering the biggest and baddest of all the Elementals; the Leviathan, Zaratan, and the Elder Tempest!
But don't you worry, fans of the more fiery of our feathered friends. The Pheonix also makes an appearance, coming back from the ashes of the episode to finish us off. So prepare your resistances and your Elemental Adept feats, and dive right in!
Available On: iTunes | Spotify | Podbean | YouTube
Don’t forget to Like/Follow/Subscribe/Whatever when you listen!
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Intro/Outro Music by: Cory Wiebe
Logo by: Kate Skidmore
Monday Jul 20, 2020
Monday Jul 20, 2020
Cooperative Game. Collaborative Storytelling. Teamwork. On this episode of the Campaign Builder, we sit down together and shine the light on different aspects of tabletop roleplaying games that new Dungeon Masters should think about when prepping for sessions. It's never too late to start promoting cohesion among the party members, and a lot of the time, there are things that DM's can do to help encourage the party to work as a single unit.
Takeaways:
- Degrees of success and failure are key aspects of good storytelling that uses random chance.
- Communicating or hiding conditions for success can add a level of tension in certain circumstances.
- Allow the players to think outside the box, execute their plans, and use creative outcomes to accomplish their goals. It is okay to reward them if they earn it.
- The flanking variant rule often acts like the Help action in combat, without using a part of the character's turn.
- Blue Streak: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0181316/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0
- Taking the time to promote teamwork in subtle ways with common information and inclusive language will set the tone at the table.
- A major part of successful teamwork is putting the other players' fun first.
Available On: iTunes | Spotify | Podbean | YouTube
Don’t forget to Like/Follow/Subscribe/Whatever when you listen!
Social: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Reddit
Email: info@itsamimic.com
Intro/Outro Music by: Cory Wiebe
Logo by: Kate Skidmore