Critical Hits in D&D 5e: The Rule Everyone Misremembers
A critical hit in D&D 5e doubles your damage dice, not your damage. Here's the rule most tables misremember, and what actually doubles on a crit.
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Mounted Combat 5e: The Half-Page Rule Everyone Misplays
Mounted combat 5e fits on half a page, and most tables still get it backward: warhorses can't trample, and falling off is a real risk.
How to Run a Space Opera Campaign (Without the Empire Turning Into Wallpaper)
A space opera campaign lives or dies on factions the crew can actually touch, not a backdrop. Here is how to keep the politics real instead of decorative.
How to Run an Isekai Campaign (Without It Turning Into Generic Fantasy by Session Five)
An isekai campaign lives or dies on the gap between two worlds, not the status screen. Here is how to keep that gap running instead of going generic.
Does a Natural 20 Always Succeed on a Skill Check in D&D 5e?
A natural 20 is an automatic hit on an attack roll. On a skill check, it is just a 20. Here is why that distinction keeps tripping up tables, and what to do about it.
Diagonal Movement 5e: The Grid Rule Almost Nobody Agrees On
Diagonal movement 5e has two official answers, and most tables are quietly using the wrong one for their own map. Here is what the rules actually say.
How to Run a West Marches Campaign (Without Burning Out the DM)
West Marches solves D&D's scheduling problem by dropping the fixed party. Here's how to build the hub, the map, and the mission board, plus the one problem the format never actually fixes.
The Airlock Had a Warranty
A fictional table disaster: a salvage crew, a three-step plan, and a sealed cargo pod that was never the cargo.
Surprise Round 5e: Why It Isn't a Real D&D 5e Rule
There's no such thing as a surprise round in D&D 5e. The surprised condition restricts one creature's own turn, and the 2024 rules changed what that restriction actually does.
The Marrow Road, Episode 1: Three Rules
Four strangers take a job to carry a sealed coffer nine days to Cinderhaven. Two rules. Then someone finds a third.
How to Run a Mecha Campaign (Without It Turning Into a Vehicle Combat Spreadsheet)
A mecha campaign lives or dies on the pilot inside the machine, not the hardware. Here is how to keep the genre's real stakes running at the table.
Shove in D&D 5e: The Attack Most Tables Get Wrong
Shove 5e is a free melee attack most tables forget they have, and the two tables that remember it usually run it wrong. Here's the actual rule.