Show Notes This week, Fiona and Hamilton tackle the most clickbait-y of all topics in RPGs - how to start out running a game of Dungeons & Dragons! Recommending various free and paid-for resources available out there to help new DMs find their feet and where to start for running your first-ever game! The VOD originally premiered on the DM's Book Club's YouTube channel on Thursday 27th Jan 2022. Use the offer code "DMBC" to get 10% off any purchase from 3rd Space Gaming! Consider using our af...
Feb 09, 2022•1 hr 15 min•Season 3Ep. 16
Show Notes This week, Fiona and Hamilton take a 'sneaky' peek into Rogues, a class where players rely on skill, stealth, and their foes’ vulnerabilities to get the upper hand in any situation. Rogues have a knack for finding the solution to just about any problem, demonstrating resourcefulness and versatility that is the cornerstone of any successful adventuring party. We also take a deeper look into the roguish Archetypes, including: Arcane Trickster Assassin Inquisitive Mastermind Phantom Scou...
Feb 02, 2022•1 hr 23 min•Season 3Ep. 15
Show Notes This week, Fiona and Hamilton go back to school and give their first impressions of the latest Magic: The Gathering campaign setting for Dungeons & Dragons - 'Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos'! From the book's bio: ' The greatest minds in the multiverse meet at Strixhaven University. Professors convey fantastic secrets to eager students, and life on campus is frenetic. But danger lurks even here. Campus hijinks mix with mishaps and sinister plots, and it’s up to you to save the d...
Jan 26, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Season 3Ep. 14
Show Notes This week, Fiona and Hamilton pick out their D&D highlights of 2021 and what they are looking forward to in 2022! This episode's audio was taken from the VOD originally premiering on Dragon's Duel's Twitch channel on Thursday 6th Jan 2022. Use the offer code "DMBC" to get 10% off any purchase from 3rd Space Gaming! Consider using our affiliate link when using DM's Guild! #SupportyourFLGS Credits The DM's Book Club is hosted, recorded, edited, and produced by Fiona Howat ( @WAIR_Po...
Jan 19, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Season 3Ep. 13
Show Notes This week, Fiona and Hamilton have a go at creating their own dragon with help from the latest sourcebook, 'Fizban's Treasury of Dragons'. From the book's blurb: 'What is the difference between a red dragon and a gold dragon? What is dragonsight? How does a dragon’s magic impact the world around them? This comprehensive guide provides Dungeon Masters with a rich hoard of tools and information for designing dragon-themed encounters, adventures, and campaigns. Dragonslayers and dragon s...
Jan 12, 2022•1 hr 18 min•Season 3Ep. 12
Show Notes This week, Fiona and Hamilton dive into Spelljammer, the famous AD&D fantasy outer space campaign setting, using the introductory boxset ' Spelljammer: AD&D Adventures in Space ' as a starting point. This episode's audio was taken from the VOD originally premiering on Dragon's Duel's Twitch channel on Thursday 9th December 2021. First published in 1989, this boxset comprises of two booklets: ' Lorebook of the Void ' describes space travel, commonly known ship types, spacefarin...
Jan 05, 2022•1 hr 22 min•Season 3Ep. 11
Show Notes This week, Fiona and Hamilton share their thoughts on how to create a good villain, using the 'Designing NPC' section of the Dungeon Master's Guide! This episode's audio was taken from the VOD originally premiering on Dragon's Duel's Twitch channel on Thursday 2nd December 2021. Chapter discussed: 'Designing NPCs/Villains' from 'Chapter 4: Creating Non-player characters' Book discussed: 'Dungeon Master's Guide' published by Wizards of the Coast, December 2014. Use the offer code "DMBC...
Dec 29, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Season 3Ep. 10
Show Notes This week, Fiona and Hamilton give their first impressions on the brand new D&D sourcebook: Fizban's Treasury of Dragons! From the book's blurb: 'What is the difference between a red dragon and a gold dragon? What is dragonsight? How does a dragon’s magic impact the world around them? This comprehensive guide provides Dungeon Masters with a rich hoard of tools and information for designing dragon-themed encounters, adventures, and campaigns. Dragonslayers and dragon scholars alike...
Dec 22, 2021•1 hr 43 min•Season 3Ep. 9
Show Notes This week, Fiona and Hamilton have a go at creating their own Domain of Delight using the ' Domains of Delight (5e) ' supplement published by Wizards of the Coast on the DM's Guild. From the supplement's bio: 'Domains of Delight are to the Feywild what Domains of Dread are to the Shadowfell: sequestered realms governed by powerful beings. Whereas a Domain of Dread is ruled by a Darklord, a Domain of Delight is ruled by an archfey—the most powerful of Fey creatures. An archfey gives fo...
Dec 15, 2021•1 hr 35 min•Season 3Ep. 8
Show Notes This week, Fiona and Hamilton travel the depths and breadth of the planes with brand new playtest material ' Unearthed Arcana 2021 - Travelers of the Multiverse '. From the bio: 'Journey to the far corners of the multiverse as one of the playable races in today’s Unearthed Arcana! This playtest document presents six races for Dungeons & Dragons: Astral Elf: An elf denizen of the Astral Plane who is likely thousands of years old. Autognome: A mechanical gnome gifted with free will....
Dec 08, 2021•48 min•Season 3Ep. 7
Show Notes This week, Fiona has on a very special guest host to create their very first D&D 5th edition character... Chapter discussed: 'Chapter 1: Step-by-Step characters' Book discussed: 'Player's Handbook' published by Wizards of the Coast, August 2014. Use the offer code "DMBC" to get 10% off any purchase from 3rd Space Gaming! Consider using our affiliate link when using DM's Guild! #SupportyourFLGS Credits The DM's Book Club is hosted, recorded, edited, and produced by Fiona Howat ( @W...
Dec 05, 2021•51 min
Show Notes This week, Fiona and Hamilton check out ' Minsc & Boo's Journal of Villany ' - a D&D 5e sourcebook that had a surprise release in October this year. The journal stars two fan-favourite characters from the video game series Baldur’s Gate; Minsc, the legendary ranger and his pet (giant space) hamster, Boo. From the book's bio: 'A century has passed since the Bhaalspawn fought over the legacy of their father — Bhaal, the Lord of Murder. Two heroes witnessed the epic struggle firs...
Dec 01, 2021•51 min•Season 3Ep. 6
Show Notes This week, Fiona and guest host Ben explore the Forgotten Realms most famous repository/fortress of knowledge - Candlekeep! Candlekeep houses a magnificent collection of books and scrolls of lore, considered the greatest collection of the writings in all of Faerûn. The keep is the home of the Avowed, a group of renowned scholars and people of learning, that revered great seer Alaundo and his collection of prophecies that foresaw many great events that passed throughout the ongoing his...
Nov 28, 2021•46 min
Show Notes This week, for our Halloween-inspired episode, Fiona and Hamilton get into the spooky season with 'Ghostwalk', a 3rd edition campaign setting for Dungeons & Dragons. The setting is centred around a locale known as the Veil of Souls, the subterranean entrance to the land of the dead, and the city of Manifest above it, where ghosts can solidly manifest and live alongside normal folk. In-world, the term "Ghostwalk" refers to the pilgrimage made by visitors to the city of Manifest. Th...
Nov 24, 2021•55 min•Season 3Ep. 5
Story spoilers for Critical Role Series 1 & 2 and Dimension 20 RPG shows Show Notes This week, Fiona and guest host Darren chat about apocalypses and how to use them as a storytelling device in your RPG campaigns. We look at examples from popular RPG shows including Critical Role & Dimension 20. Check out Darren's latest Kickstarter, Fallen Worlds - A Post Apocalyptic TTRPG . Fallen Worlds is a tactical fantasy TTRPG set in an apocalyptic world filled with demons, corrupted celestials an...
Nov 21, 2021•41 min
Story spoilers for Critical Role Series 1 & 2 Show Notes This week, in anticipation of the 3rd Critical Role campaign launch, Fiona and Hamilton discuss the previous two series of the weekly live-streamed RPG game, with the help of the two official Critical Role sourcebooks: Critical Role: Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting and Explorer's Guide to Wildemount! This episode's audio was taken from the VOD originally premiering on Dragon's Duel's Twitch channel on Thursday 21st October 2021. From the cr...
Nov 17, 2021•1 hr 47 min•Season 3Ep. 4
Show Notes This week, Fiona and guest host Ben talk about the different approaches to building combat encounters for adventures. As well as looking at the guidelines provided in the 'Dungeon Master's Guide' and 'Xanathar's Guide to Everything', Ben also gives examples of his own encounter made for a homebrew one-shot game, ' The Fate of the Egenon '. Chapters discussed: 'Creating Encounters' (p81 - 84) from 'Chapter 3: Creating Adventures' and 'Encounter Building' (p88 - 90) from 'Ch. 2: Dungeon...
Nov 14, 2021•57 min
Show Notes This week, Fiona and Hamilton discuss what the future holds for D&D after watching the 'Future of D&D' panel from D&D Celebration weekend (September 2021). This episode's audio was taken from the VOD originally premiering on Dragon's Duel's Twitch channel on Thursday 14th October 2021. ' Future of D&D ' panel's bio: 'D&D’s future is brighter than a circle of fireflies casting mirror image! Pull up a virtual seat and join Ray Winninger, Liz Schuh, Jeremy Crawford, a...
Nov 10, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Season 3Ep. 3
Show Notes This week, guest co-host Hreg introduces Fiona to the completely random world of ' Dungeon Crawl Classics ' RPG, a fast-paced, open-feeling rules set allowing for epic game experiences without unnecessary tethers! Books used: ' Dungeon Crawl Classics (DCC) ' published by Goodman Games, 2012. Use the offer code "DMBC" to get 10% off any purchase from 3rd Space Gaming! Consider using our affiliate link when using DM's Guild! #SupportyourFLGS Credits The DM's Book Club is hosted, recorde...
Nov 07, 2021•1 hr 12 min
Show Notes This week, Fiona and Hamilton continue with their fey shenanigans with the 'Feywild Companion', a homebrew 150-page treasury of Feywild inspired content published by Splinterverse ! This episode's audio was taken from the VOD originally premiering on Dragon's Duel's Twitch channel on Thursday 7th October 2021. From the book's bio: ' Whether you want to expand the options provided by 'The Wild Beyond the Witchlight' or simply make your own way into the fey realm, 'Fey Companion' has ev...
Nov 03, 2021•1 hr 20 min•Season 3Ep. 2
CW/TW: Body Horror, Gore, Death, Trypophobia. Show Notes This week, Fiona is joined by Derrick ( @HN2DM ), host of the ' How Not To DM' podcast , to pick out a team of horror monstrosities, perfect for your Halloween-themed one-shots, campaigns, or encounters! Derrick's picks: Slithering Tracker (from 'Volo's Guide to Monsters' p191) Helmed Horror (from 'Monster Manual' p183) Slaadi (from 'Monster Manual' p274) Devourer (from 'Volo's Guide to Monsters' p138) Spawn of Kyuss (from 'Volo's Guide to...
Oct 31, 2021•1 hr 35 min
Series 3 of The DM's Book Club is here! Show Notes This week, Fiona and new co-host Hamilton give their first initial impressions of the latest D&D adventure module: ' The Wild Beyond The Witchlight '. This episode's audio was taken from the VOD originally premiering on Dragon's Duel's Twitch channel on Thursday 30th September 2021. From the book's bio: ' Once every eight years, the fantastic Witchlight Carnival touches down on your world, bringing joy to one settlement after the next. Its o...
Oct 27, 2021•1 hr 18 min•Season 3Ep. 1
Show Notes This week, Fiona and guest co-host Chris Handley , talk about the upcoming expansion for Iron Kingdoms: Requiem 5e campaign setting, Iron Kingdoms: Borderlands and Beyond by Privateer Press. Chris is one of the hosts of Darker Days Radio, a horror RPG discussion podcast, and a freelance RPG writer. He has written for Cubicle 7 and Onyx Path Publishing, writing new content for games like Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, Wrath and Glory, Soulbound, Vampire the Masquerade, and Changeling the ...
Oct 23, 2021•59 min
CW/TW: Horror themes, ghosts, body horror, séances, haunted house, death. Show Notes This week, in the final instalment of our end-of-series special, Fiona takes David and Sam to a haunted house in 'House of Lament', the mini-adventure from 'Van Ritchen's Guide to Ravenloft'. Use the offer code "DMBC" to get 10% off any purchase from 3rd Space Gaming! Consider using our affiliate link when using DM's Guild! #SupportyourFLGS Credits The DM's Book Club is hosted, recorded, edited, and produced by ...
Oct 20, 2021•43 min
CW/TW: Horror themes, ghosts, body horror, séances, haunted house, death. Show Notes This week, in the fifth instalment of our end-of-series special, Fiona takes David and Sam to a haunted house in 'House of Lament', the mini-adventure from 'Van Ritchen's Guide to Ravenloft'. Use the offer code "DMBC" to get 10% off any purchase from 3rd Space Gaming! Consider using our affiliate link when using DM's Guild! #SupportyourFLGS Credits The DM's Book Club is hosted, recorded, edited, and produced by ...
Oct 13, 2021•54 min
CW/TW: Horror themes, ghosts, body horror, séances, haunted house, death. Show Notes This week, in the fourth instalment of our end-of-series special, Fiona takes David and Sam to a haunted house in 'House of Lament', the mini-adventure from 'Van Ritchen's Guide to Ravenloft'. Use the offer code "DMBC" to get 10% off any purchase from 3rd Space Gaming! Consider using our affiliate link when using DM's Guild! #SupportyourFLGS Credits The DM's Book Club is hosted, recorded, edited, and produced by...
Oct 06, 2021•33 min
Show Notes New Series! New Collaboration! Same old DnD shenanigans! We are delighted to announce that Series 3 of the DM’s Book Club will be streamed on the Dragons Duel ’s Twitch channel! We are also delighted to welcome Hamilton of Dragons Duel on board as our new regular cohost. Brand new episodes of the show will be aired weekly on Thursdays at 9pm BST/GMT, starting today - Thursday 30th September 2021! The VODs of the show will be available afterwards on the Dragons Duel Twitch and the DM’s...
Sep 30, 2021•2 min
CW/TW: Horror themes, ghosts, body horror, séances, haunted house, death. Show Notes This week, in the third instalment of our end-of-series special, Fiona takes David and Sam to a haunted house in 'House of Lament', the mini-adventure from 'Van Ritchen's Guide to Ravenloft'. Use the offer code "DMBC" to get 10% off any purchase from 3rd Space Gaming! Consider using our affiliate link when using DM's Guild! #SupportyourFLGS Credits The DM's Book Club is hosted, recorded, edited, and produced by ...
Sep 29, 2021•1 hr
CW/TW: Horror themes, ghosts, body horror, séances, haunted house, death. Show Notes This week, in the second instalment of our end-of-series special, Fiona takes David and Sam to a haunted house in 'House of Lament', the mini-adventure from 'Van Ritchen's Guide to Ravenloft'. Use the offer code "DMBC" to get 10% off any purchase from 3rd Space Gaming! Consider using our affiliate link when using DM's Guild! #SupportyourFLGS Credits The DM's Book Club is hosted, recorded, edited, and produced by...
Sep 22, 2021•1 hr 8 min
CW/TW: Horror themes, ghosts, body horror, séances, haunted house, death. Show Notes This week, in the first instalment of our end-of-series special, Fiona takes David and Sam to a haunted house in 'House of Lament', the mini-adventure from 'Van Ritchen's Guide to Ravenloft'. Use the offer code "DMBC" to get 10% off any purchase from 3rd Space Gaming! Consider using our affiliate link when using DM's Guild! #SupportyourFLGS Credits The DM's Book Club is hosted, recorded, edited, and produced by ...
Sep 15, 2021•55 min
